Potter Club
by Razamataz22
Summary: Seven years is a long time. Especially when you have to do it twice. You know what you have to do and you think you know how you'll do it, so what can you do in the meantime? Live up your family legacy of course. It's time for a changing of the guard; the Marauders time is over, now it's time for Potter Club to step up
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do Not own Harry Potter**

…

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Harry's eyes fluttered wildly as he realized what he had just heard. Strange, considering what he had heard previously was not the voice of the Sorting Hat mumbling into his ear, but rather the Killing Curse being fired at him by Voldemort.

Whatever chance he had to clear his thoughts was drowned out by the thunderous applause that he was receiving as the age old hat was taken off of his brow. He tried to stand up but succeeded in tripping over himself, tumbling down the small stairwell and crashing into a heap on the Great Hall's floor.

' _Pain's real, not a dream,'_ thought Harry as he pushed himself to a kneeling position. ' _So am I really in the past?'_

He could hear the sniggers coming from what he assumed was the Slytherin table, but ignored them as he focused on the fact that somewhere on his stumble he had split open his crown, the familiar sensation of blood upon skin trickling down his forehead. He didn't even bother to wipe it off as he got to his feet, the blood trail having parted around his eye.

Harry could hear that a few people were rushing towards him to help him up. Ignoring them completely, he got to his feet and looked towards the Slytherin table. While many of the students had expected the first year student to be in tears they were severely disappointed and somewhat terrified by the fact that instead of sniveling there was a grin, one that tugged at the corners of his mouth despite of his own will.

For a moment he wondered if this was how Voldemort felt when he had his target cornered.

Choosing to ignore the malicious thought that had crept into his mind, Harry made his way to where the Gryffindor table was located. The crowd that had come to his aid parted before him and it was clear that he had made something of a detrimental impact on all of those present. Finding a vacant spot at the table, Harry took his seat while the sorting resumed. He paid it little attention however as he used a nearby serviette to put pressure on his cut. The one thing he did notice however was that anybody who had been remotely close to him at the time had shifted to the side as if to give him enough space.

Calming his thoughts, he removed all distractions from around him and did his best to recall the events that had taken place before he had found himself sitting in a room in which last time he had checked, had been all but destroyed. Looking at his hands, he could tell these weren't the hands that had struck at Death Eaters and had hunted down Horcrux after Horcrux. When he had walked to the table he could tell that his legs weren't the legs of someone who had spent months on the run. If a _Priori Incantatem_ spell was placed upon his wand it was show that he was yet to cast one of the hundreds, if not thousands of spells he had cast over his seven years as a wizard.

Seven years that had yet to happen.

"Are you alright?" asked a familiar voice snapping Harry out of his concentration. Looking to his right it was clear that somebody hadn't been so terrified of what had occurred, or rather had not seen while waiting for the Sorting to continue. "Oh my goodness!"

"It's alright," said Harry casually realizing that he must look like an absolute wreck. "At least you don't have to fix my glasses again, Hermione."

"I think your glasses are the least of your problems," said Hermione.

"Trust me, I've had worse," said, Harry knowing full well what was in store for him in the future. Was it still the future? Maybe Professor Trelawney would have the answers to that one. Provided he could get an actual prophecy out of her.

"I find that hard to believe," said Hermione as Harry took the serviette to find that the bleeding had stopped.

Before Harry could retort once more the Sorting Ceremony had come to an end and Dumbledore was giving his speech. Harry meanwhile took the opportunity to look at the numerous professors that were sitting at the staff table. His eyes fell upon Professor Snape, the double agent who had been loyal to Dumbledore until the end. He doubted that he'd be able to get on a better page with the potions master this time round; Severus wouldn't break his cover until his dying breath. Harry couldn't very well go and blow the fact he had seen the man die.

Drifting across the table he spotted Professor Quirrell, whether the stuttering phony had Voldemort latched to the back of his head yet he couldn't remember, but there was no denying his loyalty. The man would die, Harry would guarantee it one way or the other.

Finally his gaze shifted to the man giving his speech, one Albus Dumbledore; the everlasting voice of reason and the leader of the Order of the Phoenix. Despite his age Harry doubted that the wise wizard was past his prime. His death had been an unfortunate necessity, another person that Harry had seen perish. If there was one thing he could change, anything at all, it would be Dumbledore's death.

Then there were other things to consider, firstly and foremost: Was this real? He figured that unless he woke up (or alternatively didn't) when he went to bed that night then he'd be certain. Secondly, was the future already written? Did everything that had happened have to happen?

These tense situations were going to be the death of him.

As the glory that was the opening banquet spread itself before him, Harry went straight for the water and used another couple of serviettes to clean himself up. Sadly, he didn't do a very good job which was quickly spotted by Hermione. "You're hopeless, you know that," she said as she took the damp material from him and started cleaning the blood from his face. Harry meanwhile felt a knot tighten in his stomach given the close proximity he and Hermione were currently sharing. Years from now when they should have been in their final year they had spent weeks together in a tent, nobody else for company as they continued on the daunting task left for them. Of course Ron would eventually join up with them again but that would be then.

They had sworn in secrecy that whatever had happened in that tent, stayed in that tent; especially when Ron had returned they had silently agreed that those few nights would stay between them forever.

Harry meanwhile, was having flashbacks.

Or was it flashforwards.

Freaking time travel tense.

...

Harry hadn't expected to wake up that morning yet here he was, still trapped within the body of his eleven year old self. Looking to the window he could see the first glares of the morning sun start to creep over the horizon, and the snores resounding from Ron informed him that it was still too early to be awake.

Ignoring how comfortable the bed was compared to the rucksack he had gotten used to sleeping on whilst running and hiding, Harry forced himself to a seated position and rummaged through his bags (that he had yet to unpack due to confusion more than anything else) for his robes and clean attire. Upon looking through the mess, he came across his casual attire, ie everything that his cousin had grown out of. Quickly switching into his robes. he contemplated the remainder of the clothes that he had. With a scowl crossing his features, Harry pulled out all of the hand me down clothes and dragged them down to the common room before tossing them into the roaring fire.

"What are you doing?"

Harry somehow couldn't help but not be surprised when he turned around to see Hermione sitting in one of the recliners, how he had not been able to see her was completely beyond him but considering he was on a mission to erase all connections to the Dursleys he let that one slide...for now. "Bit of Spring cleaning," announced Harry before using a fire poker to move a sleeve that was hanging out of the flames into the inferno.

"What are you going to do for clothes now?" asked Hermione putting down the book that she had been reading. Considering it was no less than five hundred pages by Harry's estimate he could only assume that this was some of her light reading.

"I'll go buy some new ones," said Harry with a shrug of the shoulders. When he had rid his bags of all the clothes he had also stumbled upon the amount of money that he had dragged with him at the time. His eleven year old self, like many magical children his age, had no real idea of the value of a Galleon and even now, without having worked a day in his future life, he had no real idea how much an average job paid. Hence his childish self had grabbed a great deal of money, enough Harry summarized that would purchase a fairly solid broom and still have leftover.

Seriously what had he planned on buying?

"How then? We're not allowed off school grounds until the holidays," stated Hermione in a matter-of-fact tone.

"Oh no, the rules say I can't leave the school grounds, whatever shall I do," said Harry sarcastically, something which wasn't lost on the intellectual girl.

"You wouldn't be contemplating doing something against the rules, now would you?"

"Please, I'm Harry Potter, chances are I could throw a bottle of ink at the back of a teacher's head and get away with a slap on the wrist," he said casually, putting the fire poker back on the ground.

"You're not serious, are you?" said Hermione wondering just how big Harry's head was.

Harry paused and thought of just what the consequences would be if he threw it at the back of Quirrel, gaining an early strike against the man who would later try to kill him would be pretty fun. "Course not, doesn't mean that I won't sneak out to Hogsmeade and pick something up," he finally said.

"Hogsmeade, that's the nearby village isn't it. I heard that you're not allowed to go there until the third year and only on specific weekends. I read about it," stated Hermione. "So then how would you propose sneaking off? Or is the famous Harry Potter not so great after all?"

"Tell you what, let's make this a bit of a contest since I'm feeling quite game," said Harry closing the gap between himself and Hermione. He could see the brown haired witch shrink back a bit and he felt he was invading her personal privacy. Harry was well aware that Hermione would feel uncomfortable in such a situation and he knew he could use that to his advantage. "Here's the conditions, by this weekend I'll have worked out a way to get into Hogsmeade and back and as proof, tell me the title of a book you'd like me to purchase while I'm there and I'll get it for you.

Now the stipulations; if I can't do it, you get to tell me to do something, and likewise if I do get it done, I get to tell you to do something. Agree?"

Hermione tried to best deal with the stipulation that Harry was imparting on her along with the close proximity she was sharing with the boy, and would afterwards explain that she had only made her decision based on the irrational sensation she had at the time. "Deal."

"Perfect," said Harry with a cheshire like smile. "Let me know what book you want by Friday morning."

With the gamble having been made, Harry chose that time to head down to exit the Common Room and go to the Great Hall for an early breakfast. On the walk he contemplated just what it was that he had done and the result because of it.

On one hand he could play out the entire time stream like it had before just because he knew exactly how it would end. Arguably that wasn't particularly the best result as it ended with him being killed.

On the other hand meanwhile it was his chance to stop Voldemort before anything terrible began. Arguably the more he changed during the present the more of an effect it would have on the future, but he was well aware of the central points he had to take care of. For example, this year he had to make sure that Quirrell and Voldemort didn't get their hands on the Philosopher's Stone, pretty simple and straightforward. Heck, he knew exactly when Quirrell would make his move on the Stone, so until then he could play it out how he wanted. Next year would be the diary and Basilisk situation, he could probably play that one better considering he didn't particularly want the Heir of Slytherin rumours to kick in again.

Again and again the potential ways to shape and mould the future infiltrated his mind and he knew that he had to change things for the better. At the same time though he was a kid again, and as a proud son of one of the Marauders he felt compelled to have some entertainment.

He would later ponder why no matter who he felt like he should prank, it always circled back to Malfoy.

And then he would ponder why he'd want to prank anyone other than Malfoy.

Before he knew it he was sitting down in the Great Hall and loading his plate full of scrambled eggs and hash browns. Biting into his breakfast, Harry considered some of the things he could change for the future, things which would help out in the long run. Of course there was the study part, which considering he had done all of the tests and all of the papers before shouldn't be too difficult. The harder part would be trying to make it not sound as intellectual as his seventeen year old mind could and make his paper 'Hermione' level.

No point in rousing suspicions that he was some kind of prodigy after all, he had more important things to take care of. Time spent in the library working on advanced magic he could disguise as a general wanting to know of the world he had found himself in. A valid excuse and one he could use to his advantage. He could still recall how fascinated he had been when he had stepped into the Burrow for the first time and watched jumpers knit themselves and pots and pans wash automatically. Hell, wandless magic would be one of the first things on his list of things to discover.

That and how to be an Animagus.

He was going to try and pry that information out of McGonagall during their first lesson later that morning. He always wondered though if the professor had deliberately waited in her cat form just to rouse interest in her students and prickle their desire to become Animagi themselves

Focusing back on what his general plan was, he was contemplating doing some morning runs. Nothing too strenuous, but when he was older he was actually surprised by how many witches and wizards he had grown up with were able to keep their figure despite their not being a compulsory physical activity to be had outside of Flying Lessons in first year. Couple of runs down to the forest and back a week probably wouldn't go down too badly, talking somebody into coming with him would be the harder part.

Putting that to the side, he had a look around the tables to contemplate what needed to be done. If he was able to kill the snake that Draco would summon the following year during the duel that Lockhart would orchestrate he could possibly look at creating Dumbledore's Army early. Main thing though would be to prevent Lockhart from forcing his nose into it and whether Harry could prevent himself from erasing Lockhart's memory within the first few weeks.

Of course for the duel to be arranged in the first place, Ms Norris would need to get petrified, which would mean the Basilisk was loose which meant Ginny had the diary and Harry knew all too well how that would play out. Plus anything he changed now could result in more than petrifications occurring.

Why did trying to save everyone be so complicated?

"Hello Harry," said a somewhat unfamiliar voice, snapping Harry out of his thoughts. Looking up from his food he was surprised to see Susan Bones, or at least who he thought was Susan Bones. Considering how early it was it was pretty safe for the Hufflepuff to be conversing with him at this hour without rumours starting to spread like wildfire. While inter-house communications weren't banned, they seldom happened. He always wondered why that was since the only times the school houses faced each other were in the general House Cup and Quidditch.

"Hey Susan," said Harry, hoping he said the right name. He didn't really know what to say since he hadn't communicated with her at all until she joined up to Dumbledore's Army in fifth year. Like him, she had been quite aggravated with Umbridge's teaching habits especially since her aunt was a part of the ministry, something to do with the Aurors if he remembered correctly.

"Are you an early riser as well?" she asked.

Looking around at the tables, there were maybe a dozen students up at the moment between all four houses. "Not normally," he said. "Just not much of a heavy sleeper, especially when your sleep is affected by the incomprehensible wailing that your roommates call snoring."

Susan giggled at that comment, causing Harry to raise an eyebrow in confusion. "That's funny," she said before gesturing at the bench before her.

"Be my guest," said Harry, intrigued by this sudden development. As Susan took the seat opposite him he wondered exactly how this would effect everything in the future. And then he just thought ' _Screw it, let's see how this goes.'_ "So what brings you to my neck of the woods?"

"Well the only people on the Hufflepuff table are the Prefects and I don't want to look like I'm sucking up to them," answered Susan. "The few Ravenclaw students are all huddled together so I didn't want to pry into that. So you were the only option."

"Not tempted to head over to the Slytherins then," stated Harry not failing to notice the fact that Susan had neglected them in her options.

"My Aunt told me to stay away from the Slytherin's as much as I could," she said.

"I'd like to say that's stereotypical, but none of them have given me a reason to trust them at the moment," said Harry.

"So you have a reason to trust me then?"

"We've shared a conversation for over a minute and you haven't asked about the scar."

Susan bit at the inside of her lip immediately, making Harry think that he had said something wrong. He did his best to try and recollect what he would learn in the future about the girl and while her aunt perished during their sixth year, from memory he couldn't recall anything in regards to the rest of her family.

This of course put Harry on edge.

"Sorry, bit of a poor joke," said Harry.

"No it's alright," said Susan who looked as if she was on the verge of tears. Harry, being the gentleman he felt like being at the moment, picked up a serviette and with a quick transfiguration spell he wouldn't learn for a while, transformed the paper napkin into a silken handkerchief which he offered to the Hufflepuff student. "Thank you," she said as she took the offered gift.

Harry sat in silence as he contemplated his next move whilst Susan dried her eyes. Somewhat thankfully, it was her who struck first. "Are you looking forward to classes?"

"Somehow I think they're going to be different to what I'm used to," said Harry.

"And why's that?"

"Somehow I don't think Maths and English can really compete with Charms and Transfiguration," he answered, once more getting a small giggle out of the girl. "I could be proven wrong though, you never know."

"You never know," repeated Susan before she stood up. "It's been lovely speaking to you, we'll chat again soon."

"Sure thing," said Harry as his new friend walked away. Was she her friend? He had kinda forgotten what it was like to make friends. Was that what it felt like or was that something different altogether?

He really needed to learn what it was like to be a kid again.

...

"Mr. Potter, our latest - _celebrity_ ," declared Snape, venom basically spitting out from every syllable. Harry meanwhile knew that this was nowhere near as vicious as the Potions Master could get, but considering he was the son of both Snape's biggest rival and biggest crush he could only imagine the emotions Snape was feeling.

Provided Snape could feel emotions.

Harry knew the answer, but what good would he do by showing that he actually knew the answer. He could infuriate the Potions Master for sure but that wouldn't accomplish anything in the long run. He said that he didn't know, much like he did for the following questions that Snape threw his way.

"How disappointing," declared Snape at the end of his pop quiz, Harry merely shrugging in innocence. He had technically only discovered the Magical World that year, how was he meant to know this stuff first time round. Of course he forgot that Hermione had put her hand up for every question. Seriously, how fast could she read?

As the class began in earnest, Harry copied down what Snape put up on the board. Essentially it was the 'Hundred and One things Not to do when Brewing a Potion', which, whilst common sense, would be lost on a select few. Again he could have sat there and not done anything, but that would only put him well within Snape's glare once more. He doubted that he and the Head of Slytherin House would ever get along but so long as they were not enemies, well at least more so than they already were.

Eventually the class came to an end and as Harry packed away his belongings he couldn't help but see how people were looking at him. Every time he made eye contact with somebody from Slytherin he could hold it only for a split second before they turned away, as if they had been struck. Perhaps his fall the previous night would get some of them off his back.

Perhaps it would even deter Malfoy for a while.

Maybe even a week.

Only if he was lucky though.

Turns out, he wasn't.

"Don't stack it going up the stairs, Potter," declared Malfoy turning around to face the Boy Who Lived. His comments managed to get a snigger out of a few of the Slytherin students, showing Harry that there were some things he would never be able to change. Harry contemplated simply ignoring the comment, arguably in hindsight that may have been the better thing to do. He could practically guarantee that the old Harry would have done just that.

He was not the old Harry.

Finishing packing away his belongings, he pulled out his wand yet kept it hidden, casting an illusion on his face as he did so. If they thought he looked demonesque the previous night then this would terrify them.

Snapping his head up fast enough to nearly give himself whiplash, Harry exposed what had become of his face. His mouth now extended from cheekbone to cheekbone, rows of serrated teeth filled his gums as blood ran from both his eyes and nose. Scars littered whatever skin was visible and his eyeballs were missing from their sockets.

Needless to say, it got the intended result.

Screams of terror and the stench of urine were hard to miss.

"Ten points from Gryffindor, Potter," declared Snape. Harry couldn't even force himself to fight back the smile that was present as the illusion vanished. He should have expected as much but he was grateful that there wasn't a detention included in the deal.

As he vacated the dungeon he struggled to wipe the smirk from his face.

It wasn't surprising that when dinner came around rumours had started sprouting up once again, this time surrounding the fact that the blow to the head the previous night had only served to wake up the devil within him. Outlandish for sure, yet at the same time highly entertaining.

His meal was interrupted when he found mirror images sitting on either side of him. It seemed word had even gotten to these two. "Hello there," they said in unison.

"Fred, George, or is it Gred and Forge these days?" asked Harry of the Weasley twins.

"How do you know our names?" asked the one on his left.

Harry bit at the inside of his lip, understanding that he hadn't actually been introduced to them yet. Even last night they had hung around the group of teenagers their own age as opposed to harassing Ron and himself. Probably some strict words from Percy had caused them to avoid him the previous evening. Clearly things were different now.

"Ron told me about you, on the train," lied Harry, or at least he thought he had lied. The trip to Hogwarts was quite long and the number of different conversations they had had during that time were quite immense. Plus it had been seven years prior to him, how was he meant to remember what he said on a train ride?

"Ah," they said in unison before breaking off into individual fragments of sentences,

"Now, word around the halls..."

"Is that you Mister Potter..."

"Were able to scare..."

"Nay, terrify..."

"Your fellow first years..."

"With what one..."

"Could only describe..."

"As a work of art."

"So what do you want?" asked Harry before they continued.

"Well, we were wondering..."

"If you would care to join us..."

"For a little trip this weekend..."

"To a little joke shop we know..."

"And pick up a few supplies..."

"For future endeavours..."

"Which we invite you..."

"To attend with us."

The last line had been said in unison before they paused, giving him time to contemplate their offer. He hadn't anticipated something like this occurring and wasn't entirely sure if he wanted to pursue that kind of foreseeable future. With his prank today though he had felt a sense of pride in his work and wondered if it was the same sensation his father or his friends had felt when they pranked one of their peers.

He wanted more, of that he was certain.

"Well, considering that I was planning on heading out to Hogsmeade next weekend anyways," said Harry softly so that only the twins could hear him. They were somewhat surprised by his declaration if the raised eyebrows were any indication. "While I can't say whether I will partake in your activities, either way I state that I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

If he didn't have their attention before, he definitely had it now.

...

Once more Harry found himself staring at the ceiling as Ron snored away in the bed next to him. Had he really been able to sleep with all that racket first time round? Ignoring questions of the past/present, Harry debated the debate he had had with the twins. He had no problem with telling them that he was the son of Prongs, explaining that his father had left a note for him when he learned of his heritage. A white lie but one that was easily believable and had the twins begging for more information.

Harry had told them that he would explain it all to them in time but for now to allow him to do his own thing. The main problem was though that he had no real idea what his own thing was. Sure, he had enjoyed pranking Malfoy and his cohorts, but there were only so many times something like that would work. Even now he knew that the expectations on him from both Fred and George would be enormous, and they would await with baited breath to see what the son of a Marauder could do.

But what could he do?

It was then that an idea emerged in his thoughts, one that was a mixture of Ravenclaw and Slytherin in nature. Pushing himself into a seated position, Harry lit a candle and pulled out a piece of parchment along with a quill and some ink. He had no idea if this would work, heck, chances were it would collapse in on itself instantly. Perhaps that was why he was suddenly so determined to see it through, attempting something that nobody else in the school would even contemplate.

Sure he knew that he had to remember to save the world from Voldemort but he saw no problem with having a little bit of fun between now and then.

For possibly the first time in his life he actually felt like a kid.

A man trapped in a boy's body, but a kid nonetheless.

...

Susan sat at the breakfast table, eating away at the cereal she had in front of her. Once more she had come to breakfast early not wanting to be late for the first classes of the day. It was predominantly for that reason she was completely caught off guard as an owl landed in front of her, a scroll attached to it's leg and a small package in it's beak.

It was still a while before the post should even start arriving and Susan had to blink a couple of times and look around to see if something else was out of the ordinary. Those that had seen the owl no longer paid it any attention and the young Miss Bones imagined that this was something that may occur more often than not. Her haste quickened as the owl screeched in her face wanting her to hurry up.

Untying the scroll, Susan passed the owl a biscuit off the table which it grabbed in it's beak before taking to the air. The owl itself had been unrecognisable, grey in colour and likely belonged to the school itself. It made her question though why something was being sent to her as opposed to someone actively coming towards her and passing her the parchment.

Unravelling the scroll, she was glad that she had come to breakfast early when the first thing the parchment said was ' _read this alone'._ Looking over her shoulders to see that nobody was reading what she had, she continued down the paper.

 _Susan Bones_

 _Congratulations. You have been chosen for a very specific task, one of which you cannot let anybody know about. To ensure this, this parchment will incinerate within two minutes of being unravelled, you have been warned._

 _Inside that box is a muggle novelty item. You will inflate it and place it on Professor Quirrell's chair before dinner this evening. It has been enchanted to vanish when in contact with wood so there is little chance of it being seen._

 _The time has been set, only you can make it happen._

 _Failure to do so will result in severe consequences._

 _Welcome to Potter Club._

...


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

 **...**

Harry paid no attention to the topic at hand during his first Defence Against the Dark Arts class. How anybody was able to get a coherent response out of the stuttering fool was questionable at best. Instead he merely pondered on what would be happening to the man later that evening, or not if it panned out in such a way. Looking over his shoulder he could see that Susan had struggled to get any of her work done and was writing with a shaking hand. Perhaps his letter to her had been too aggressive.

Something he would have to look into regarding future prospects for his little club.

He had wondered who he would select the previous night and felt guilty at first for choosing Susan as his test subject. He had rattled his brain for any information he could come up with regarding what he knew about the girl and recalled only that she lived with her aunt, meaning the rest of her family was more likely than not dead. It was a grim yet likely possibility, and one he could exploit to a certain degree. He planned on lingering behind after the lesson and figured that chances were high that Susan would question him about the letter.

Speaking of the lesson, he had learned the only valuable thing worth learning during this first year, Voldemort was indeed connected to the back of Quirrell's head. When he had been writing on the blackboard his scar had ached and Harry for the life of him couldn't figure out why he never got such evil vibes from the professor before. He had pondered going to Dumbledore and stating that his scar hurt whenever he had a staring contest with the back of Quirrell's turban, but opted not to. Better to not let the Headmaster hire somebody new and alter the timeline too dramatically.

Instead he would alter it himself.

Dangerous, but he would enjoy every step of it.

It wasn't long before class ended and Harry slowly packed away his things. He was free for the rest of the day so it wasn't like he was going to be running late for something. "Are you alright M-M-Mister P-Pott-ter?" asked Quirrell, noticing the speed in which Harry was packing.

"Just got a few things scratching at the back of my head," replied Harry.

He fought back the urge to slap himself across the face for such a terrible line.

"W-Well if you have a q-q-question p-please d-don't hesitate to ask," said Quirrell as he turned around and started cleaning what he had written on the board, causing Harry's scar to momentarily ache. Between both the sharp pains Voldemort mentally sent him and the inconsistent stuttering, Harry questioned whether he would be able to prevent himself from killing Quirrell early this time round.

Grabbing his gear, he headed out the classroom and was glad that his hunch was spot on from earlier. "Is everything alright?" he asked noticing the girl waiting for him.

"Yes...No...I mean..." started Susan unsure of what she wanted to say.

"If something's wrong you can tell me," assured Harry.

"Well...you see, this morning an owl came before the post..." said Susan, her voice timid and uneven.

"Here, let's go for a walk and get outside for a bit and into the sunlight," declared Harry, shifting the conversation completely. Susan didn't respond in words and merely nodded her head as she and Harry walked through the corridors. Eventually they came into an empty courtyard and Harry gestured for Susan to take a seat on a stone bench. "Now," he said as he took the seat next to her, "Take a deep breath and tell me what this owl did."

Seconds passed as Susan did her best to compose herself. "Well, this owl landed in front of me and had both a scroll and a small package," explained Susan in a much more fluid manner. Maybe the walk and sunshine had been a good idea after all. "The scroll said some...things before it burst into flames right in front of me!"

"Did it hurt you?" asked Harry with concern in his voice.

"No, thankfully," said Susan. "Harry...have you heard of the Potter Club?"

"Potter Club...do I have a fanclub or something?" asked Harry.

While Susan didn't doubt the fact that there was likely a Harry Potter Club being established between some of the first year students or one that already existed she was confident that Harry wasn't a part of it. "I...don't know," she said slowly. "The letter said that I'd been welcomed into the Potter Club."

"A combusting letter doesn't seem like the best way to get someone to join a club," said Harry earning a slight giggle from the young Hufflepuff.

"No it doesn't," said Susan turning her attention skywards.

"There was more, wasn't there."

"The letter said I had to do something with the item in the package before dinner or face...consequences," said Susan. Harry didn't say anything but put a comforting arm around her shoulder. Susan flinched at the initial contact and Harry guessed that with her aunt being such a powerful figure in the Ministry of Magic she spent more time at work than at home. Physical contact was likely a rarity.

"I don't know what to do," she said nuzzling her way closer to Harry.

Harry meanwhile had frozen somewhat, having not expected this kind of development. He was glad that she enjoyed the feeling of being comforted, nothing was wrong with that at all. From anybody else's perspective however it would look like they were a couple. While not necessarily a bad thing he didn't need rumors sprouting up just yet.

"I say for now," started Harry after what seemed like a longer than necessary time. "Do as they say, if anything, it may just be a prank or a gag but I recommend not telling anybody else about it for now."

"But what if what I do hurts someone?" asked Susan as she edged closer again.

Harry was getting flustered in the cheeks, even having come from the future he had no idea where this was going. "Well," he said as he stood up, breaking the contact between himself and Susan. He paced for a bit in a thinking pose, making sure that he didn't make eye contact for a little while while he calmed his emotions. "I guess you just have to take the risk, I seriously doubt that whoever sent it to you would do so with the intention of hurting someone else, especially since we haven't even been at this school for forty eight hours yet! It may be someone in the upper years and this might be some sort of unwritten initiation period, I honestly don't know. If it was me, I'd go through with it, but in the end it's your choice."

Susan had laced her fingers together when Harry finally found it in him to turn back to her. Her ginger hair had fallen over her face as she contemplated her options. Harry remained silent as the sun beat down on his back. "Thank you Harry," said Susan as she stood up. "I'll see you around."

It was an awkward situation and Harry by no means had an answer to what Susan would actually do that night. Regardless, he had already put plans into motion if it were to go either way. Grabbing his gear, Harry slung it over before heading towards to Common Room, wondering whether or not he had made the right move by calling his little group Potter Club.

The way he saw it there were two options people had if they wanted to bring this up, either take it to one of the Professors or to him directly. If it was brought to one of the school teachers he would be able to claim that if he were to create such a club he wouldn't name it so that it would be brought straight back onto him. Arguably he had already seen the results when Dumbledore's Army had been discovered, and unlike the Headmaster he wasn't going to be taking the fall.

Climbing up the stairwell he pondered who he should target next to join his little project. Arguably somebody in Gryffindor would be the simplest way to go but he had to choose wisely, both the person and how best to manipulate them. Alternatively, if he selected someone from a different house it would remove suspicion from him, considering how little houses mingled outside of classes.

Maybe he should ask Dumbledore to arrange an interhouse chess tournament.

At least then Ron could win something.

...

Harry was one of the first people to arrive at the Great Hall for dinner that evening, having ensured that he got a good seat for the event. Whether or not the main event happened or not he couldn't help but be somewhat nervous for Susan. Had she gone through with it, had she not, had she gone to her friends or perhaps a teacher?

All these questions would be answered shortly.

Harry meanwhile was going to be entertained prior as he found himself once more joined by both the Weasley twins, one of them sitting on either side of him once more. "Alright Harry, we believe that we have something that belongs to you if you wish to accept it," said the one on his left. "Of course if you want to lend it to us from time to time it'd be greatly appreciated as we would love to do the Marauders proud."

"You two not doing the whole back and forth thing tonight?" asked Harry noticing the distinct lack of combination chatting.

"Well we discussed last night about what we were going to say, and decided that as opposed to our normal routine we would nominate a candidate to speak on both our behalves," they said. "So after a vigorous game of Exploding Snap I was declared the spokesperson for this encounter."

"You're not going to tell me which one you are, are you?"

"Nope."

"Figured," said Harry with a cheeky smile. "As for with the map, I'd like it back predominantly as it is something of a family heirloom. That being said, perhaps down the track we'll consider each other brothers of sort and as I would see you as part of my family, I believe that my family heirloom would belong as much to you as it does to me."

"How very generous of you, Harry."

"Likewise, as family I hope that if the time ever comes that you'll have my back for whatever reason, and I too would have yours."

"I believe that is most acceptable."

Harry was about to continue when he spotted Quirrell walking towards the teachers table. The Great Hall wasn't as full as he would like at the moment and even the Headmaster wasn't present, which probably worked better in the scenario, provided Susan had done what he had asked of her. Fred and George had seemed to sense something was amiss and after a quick glance between each other followed Harry's line of sight towards the turban wearing professor as he sat down at the table.

It was loud, louder than any natural fart ought to have been. All the gossiping and chatter ceased immediately as all eyes focused towards where the sound was originating from. Quirrell meanwhile was frozen on the spot as he realized that the sound was coming from him, and while it should have ceased quickly, it did not; if anything it continued to grow in decibels. He pushed himself onto his feet, however that only activated the second part of the prank in which what he had been sitting on exploded violently, causing him to squeak in fear.

Silence reigned for a few seconds before the giggling began, the flustered teacher vacating the room with his cheeks red with embarrassment only caused the laughter to grow into a chuckle. Harry meanwhile ignored the laughter as he looked towards the Hufflepuff table where Susan's face was hidden from view, her gaze directed at her feet.

Harry started planning his next move.

...

Susan was terrified as she sat at breakfast that morning, once more having done so before many of the other students. Her hands were shaking as she went to pick up a slice of toast. She had gotten minimal sleep that night, if any at all.

She was petrified of what the consequences would be if they traced the prank back to her. What would be her punishment; surely it wasn't bad enough to warrant anything more than a detention?

Putting her toast back down on her plate without taking a bite, Susan used both her hands to rub at her eyes. Thankfully she only had one class for the day, so worst case scenario was that she fell asleep and embarrassed herself. At least she knew that one was a guaranteed detention.

The screech of an owl made her freeze in fear and she began chanting over and over, begging whatever luck she had that the owl would bypass her. Closing her eyes she continued asking whatever deity was looking over her for the owl to go elsewhere.

Seconds passed by before she opened her eyes, finding herself staring straight at the owl. Again it looked as if the owl belonged to the school, but thankfully this time it only carried a scroll tied to it's leg, no package in sight.

Reaching forward with trembling fingers, she undid the twine that was holding the parchment to the creature, the owl taking flight moments later. Unrolling it, she braced herself for whatever it said.

 _Congratulations Susan, your initiation is complete._

 _Or so we had hoped._

 _Your actions were not detected, the initial blame having fallen to Fred and George Weasley of Gryffindor. They have denied all knowledge of the prank and Dumbledore has seen fit to not punish them for something they took no part in. We hope that you understand that your actions were not malicious in anyway shape or form and merely served as a source of entertainment._

 _While we will not tell you our goal at this time, I do hope that you believe that we do not wish to cause harm to others._

 _Unfortunately, here is where our problems may begin. There is one who does know what you did; while you may not have told Harry Potter directly that this was what you were doing, the implication was there. As such we believe that he may be suspicious of any future incidents, and if they were to get too out of hand we can't help but fear that he will rat you out._

 _This is something we cannot permit, you are a valuable asset, Susan, and we have high hopes for you. Therefore, until we give you your next assignment, we wish for you to befriend Harry. Our sources indicate that the Muggles he lived with were vile people who prevented him from creating friendships with others. We don't know how he will react to a genuine friendship so we can offer you no advice into how to go about such a process other than to be yourself._

 _Of course, here is the part where we offer you the choice to do what you want to do. Below there are two boxes which you are to select from. If you choose the box on the left, then we will not contact you again and this paper will incinerate. If you choose the box on the right, you give us your permission to contact you again for another chance to bring some more joy and entertainment to Hogwarts._

 _Just tap your wand on the box you wish to select._

 _We hope you make the right choice._

 _Potter Club_

Susan reread the parchment, feeling more awake than she had earlier that morning. While the paper technically gave her only two options, she believed that there was a third one regarding the fact she could fess up and pass the paper to a teacher or a Prefect. Of course then she would basically be signing herself up for a week's worth of detentions and potentially get whoever else was in the Potter Club in trouble. Surely if the piece of paper in her hand got to Dumbledore then the Headmaster would have some way to track down the author.

She decided that the third option she had created was not viable.

Regardless of which she picked she was still going to befriend Harry; the boy had shown her kindness and wisdom the day before she had imagined boys her age would not have.

She made her decision as she pulled out her wand and tapped the appropriate box. The result was instantaneous as the paper began to fold in on itself before forming into an origami crane which took flight in front of her, much to her joy and amusement, a small laugh escaping her lips.

...

Harry watched as the paper bird flew away from Susan, the red-haired witch having chosen to remain a member of his little club for the moment. He wasn't sure what her choice would be after the previous night when she had seemed ashamed of her actions. Arguably though, he imagined that she had felt a rush of excitement from having done something so against the norm. It wasn't a feeling that someone could get normally, and that had been what he had been hoping for.

He had her hooked, now she just needed to reel her in.

Getting up from the table, his stomach full of bacon and baked beans, Harry headed towards the exit only to pause as he came face to face with Hermione. A sly smile crossed his face as he recalled that he had another game going on with the intelligent student. "So Hermione, have you thought of a book you want me to get?" asked Harry of the ginger haired witch.

"Well, I gouged out the contents of the library and discovered that they have very minimal in terms of fiction," declared Hermione.

"Fiction," repeated Harry in disbelief. He had been expecting either something historical or something educational; fictional hadn't even come into his calculations.

"Yes, I want you to get me a copy of _'Harry Potter and the Jade Dragon._ '"

Seconds passed by one after the other as Harry just stood there in complete shock. "You're shitting me right," he finally said.

Hermione allowed a frown to cross her face, but didn't comment. "Yes, you told me to come up with a book that I wanted and that's the one I want," she decreed.

"C'mon, you really want me to get a fictional story with me as the title character? Not something about Goblin Wars, facts about Hippogriffs or dangerous magical fauna?"

"All those things I can discover in the library," stated Hermione. "Are you too embarrassed to go buy a book about you?"

"Honestly, yes."

"Well it's not like you're going to be able to get it anyway, I'll await to hear about your defeat over the coming days."

That was all that was said before Hermione moved past Harry and went deeper into the Great Hall for breakfast. Harry meanwhile was scratching at the back of his head wondering what had possessed Hermione to want that book, of all things. It was one in a collection and he could guarantee that the store had it, it was just kind of humiliating getting something that was about him, and a fictional adventure he would never have. Or at least he wouldn't have within the seven years from now.

After that who knew.

...

Harry had to select his target wisely for bringing up the possibility of the Wizarding Chess tournament. While he had mentally joked about, it he had spent a good deal of time contemplating the possibility of arranging such an event, and then subsequently sabotaging it. Part two of that plan was still in development, but the possibility of poking the proverbial bear that was inter house rivalry seemed like too good of an offer to pass up.

He just had to get a teacher to like the idea and then forward it onto Dumbledore.

Easier said than done.

Professor Binns was out of the question, the deceased teacher would undoubtedly divert the conversation to a game of chess he had had centuries earlier in which his pawn was the last piece protecting his king against the enemy, or something along those lines. Probably in a more boring tone however, Harry had theorized that the professor had died due to lack of excitement in his life.

Professor Snape wouldn't give him the time of day and tracking down Professor Sprout outside of the Greenhouses was difficult to say the least. Professor Quirrell was out for obvious reasons, Harry had no intention of spending more time than necessary with Voldemort's henchmen. Professor McGonagall was also out of the question, as she would think that the boy was trying to suck up to his head of house. While she was the most likely to say yes, he didn't quite feel like becoming the next Percy Weasley.

Hence he had tracked down the smallest of the teachers, one who was seemingly ecstatic about the whole idea. "Excellent idea, Mister Potter," proclaimed Flitwick. "Heavens, I never wondered why somebody hadn't thought of such an idea before."

"Well my friend was just telling me that the only competitions between the houses were for the Quidditch and the House Cup," said Harry with a shrug of the shoulders. "I thought maybe something else would be nice for the Houses to compete in."

"Considering this is your idea, Mister Potter, how best would you go about it?" asked the Charms professor.

"Well, suppose if each house was to put up four way you could separate the tournament into four equal brackets, with a student of each house in one bracket ," explained Harry. "That way the tournament is fair, yet at the same time in the semifinals all of the players could be from the same house."

"While technical, I wouldn't consider such a feat plausible, Mister Potter, but continue," stated Flitwick.

"Well, I'm not quite sure what the prize is for the house, maybe fifty points to the House Cup for the winner and thirty to the runner up with both semifinalists receiving ten," said Harry. "If it was to become an annual thing, however, there'd have to be a trophy."

"I'm sure we can organize something there," declared Flitwick. "I'll relay this on to Professor Dumbledore right away, and ten points to Gryffindor for your idea."

"Thank you Professor," said Harry as the small teacher started walking down the corridor at what Harry assumed was his top speed. Harry meanwhile had to fight back the urge to skip merrily through the halls as he contemplated his next ploy. Essentially, sneaking into Hogsmeade in a couple of hours.

Joy.

...

Hermione was in the library that Friday afternoon, nose hovering over textbooks as she cross referenced her Charms assignment with books that were years above her current class. It didn't matter to her that her essay had been assigned only the previous day, and that the textbooks she was looking at were some of the more highly advanced in the library. For years Hermione had studied well above her grade.

Due to the school year starting at the beginning of September, Hermione had only just missed out on being sent there the previous year. Hermione hadn't waited to head to Diagon Alley with her parents and begin learning all she could about the Magical World. Needless to say, most of the purchases had been made at the bookstore while her parents did their best to keep their jaws in place. While Hermione may have been mesmerised by the wondrous world she had entered, her parents had been astounded that something like that had been kept hidden for so long.

The first debate when they had returned to the normal world was whether to keep Hermione studying in the now defined 'Muggle' world or pull her out of school. Ultimately they had allowed Hermione to make the decision. Her first response had been to see whether or not she could join as soon as possible and catch up on any lessons she had already missed. She had nearly cried when she had been told that that was not a viable option but she took it in stride. Hermione understood that if she was to join this wonderous world she would have to abide by their rules.

The decision was eventually made to pull her out of school so that she could best prepare herself for the transition to the new environment. They had told the school that she was being transferred to an elite school in France and when the school had pressed for more details they refused to give any.

A slam on the desk brought Hermione out of her momentary funk and found herself looking at a book not found in the library. In fact it was a book that shouldn't be in the school at all considering this was a place of study, not leisure.

" _Harry Potter and the Jade Dragon,"_ she said reading the title. This wasn't the only book to be placed in front of her as five stacks of five books found their way in front of her. In other words, the entire collection of the _Harry Potter Adventures._

"Here you go," said Harry with either of the Weasley twins by his side, the brothers having gone with Harry on his little expedition.

"How did you get these?" asked Hermione as she closed the book she had been looking through.

"Bookstore in Hogsmeade," answered Harry. "When I told the clerk who I was she gave me the entire collection free, well free money wise. I had to sign a copy for her daughter which I had no problem with."

"But how did you get to Hogsmeade?" asked Hermione.

"What, you expect us to tell all of our secrets?" said one of the twins with a cheeky grin.

"If you ever want to sneak out, however, we'll gladly escort you," said the other one.

"I believe our business is done for the day, gentlemen, I wish you well with whatever it is you have planned with whatever it was that you purchased," said Harry clapping both the twins on the back.

"Until next we meet," said both twins in unison as they turned towards Harry and gave a mock bow before galavanting off. Hermione could only fathom what they were off to do now.

"What was that?"

"Aren't you full of questions today," stated Harry as he sat on the other side of the table, his head only just poking over the collection that was his magical adventures. He had known such a collection had existed but he wasn't aware of how extensive it was. He would peruse through the contents at his own pace to see whether or not it was possible to turn any of the fiction into nonfiction somewhere down the track. Maybe the one about the Goblin Mine or the Curse of the Forest. "Don't answer that, instead we need to start discussing the terms of our agreement."

"Agreement?" said Hermione before coming to sudden realization.

"Yep, we're going to be having a bit of fun tonight."

...

 **Hope you enjoyed. Special thanks to Kalebxdd for his brilliant beta work.**

 **Peace**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

 **...**

Hermione had had no idea what Harry had planned for the two of them. Unless he stated otherwise, until the end of the day she was his to do so as he wished.

Remaining in the library had been the last thing she could have thought of.

With the _Harry Potter Collection_ pushed to the side of the table, Harry had asked Hermione in finding him some tomes on Runes, and more specifically Pressure Runes. At first she had been curious as to what he had meant by that, and he had chuckled nervously as he rubbed the back of his head. For further explanation he had basically told her to imagine an Indiana Jones based trap where putting pressure on object 'A' it would cause effect 'B' to occur.

Hermione had giggled at Harry's poor terminology but thankfully, having had a father who had a man crush on Harrison Ford, she roughly knew what he had been talking about. A few minutes later and they had amassed a small collection of relatable knowledge which they were now plowing through at a moderate pace, taking a good deal of notes as they did so.

Hermione glanced up at her paper and watched for Harry for a moment. She hadn't even known the boy for a week other than what she had seen in classes and on the Hogwarts Express. Of course she had read about him in many of her books and he effectively was a celebrity in and of his own right. Heck, he had even managed to get the entire fictional collection sitting next to them for nothing more than a signature.

The main thing was though that he hadn't intended to go there and merely pick up the books. He didn't flash around his reputation as a means to get through school work and he didn't use it as a social aspect. Word was already spread that he had refused a few of the second and third year students who had wanted him to join their friendship circle because he had believed that they just wanted the Boy Who Lived, not Harry Potter.

It seemed surreal in a sense; any other eleven year old would practically be abusing such authority to their whim. The only reason she was submitting now was because of a bet she had made with a fellow student. Nothing more, nothing less.

"Everything alright, Hermione? You've been looking at me for a while now," said Harry without turning his gaze off his book.

"How did you..."

"I haven't heard you turn a page in eighty seven seconds, well below your average," answered Harry as he scribbled down a note on the parchment next to him.

Hermione felt her cheeks go red as her eyes shot back down to the book in front of her. She didn't know whether he was serious or not about the whole eighty seven second thing, but the fact that he was paying attention at all was nerve tingling. It wasn't long into her study that she found her eyes drifting once more to the boy in front of her. Harry somehow seemed to sense the eyes on him and shifted to meet her gaze.

"Yes?"

"Harry, what are you thinking about?"

"That's a very vague question."

"Well, I mean you seemed like a different person on the train when I met you," said Hermione causing Harry's eyes to squint ever so slightly. "You had no real clue of what was happening and didn't even know a spell to fix your glasses. Then over the next week you study like there's no tomorrow, and now you've asked me to look into something that we won't remotely begin to study for years. So, what are you thinking about?"

Harry bit at the inside of his lip as he contemplated his answer. True, he had been studying more than he had been last time round, but the textbooks he was looking over were in fact books he had borrowed from the library with an illusion charm cast over them. "Well," he said slowly as he put down his quill. "This world just came at me out of nowhere, if you know what I mean. I didn't find out how my parents died until a little over a month ago and was told that I was a wizard. It was crazy! I think it was during the Sorting Ceremony I began to realize that this was my life from now on. I mean right now I'm studying runes with a magical girl."

The deep shade of red that encompassed Hermione's features easily dwarfed the previous, but while Harry spotted it he didn't comment as he continued his spiel. "So in regards to your question earlier, Hermione, what am I thinking about, the answer is nowhere near as simple as it should be. I'm thinking about why I was taken away from this world when I was just a kid as I was not Muggle-born. Arguably I may have been safer there considering who I am, but I was treated like dirt by a family that didn't love me. I'm also thinking about what I can do now that I have discovered just who I am. Also, I'm thinking about what the world has in store for me and whether or not these books here could potentially become nonfiction. Finally, I'm thinking about the intelligent girl in front of me and how grateful I am for her in sticking to our agreement and helping me now. I think that about covers it wouldn't you say?"

Hermione didn't respond as she slowly lifted up her book to cover her face, a cheeky grin crossing Harry's face now that he was out of sight. He imagined it would be a while before Hermione had composed herself to return to the task at hand.

Thankfully for Hermione, a distraction was at hand. It was not a good one however.

"What do we have here, lads?" said one Draco Malfoy as he, accompanied by the ever present Crabbe and Goyle, stopped by the table where she and Harry sat. The blond-haired Slytherin picked up one of the many books. "What is all this rubbish?"

"That would be the complete collection of all of my adventures, I've yet to organize them in chronological order however, so it's a bit of a mess," stated Harry as he looked up from his work. "You're more than welcome to borrow one but I expect it to be given back to me in pristine condition, meaning that your two drones can't put their chocolate covered mits on them."

Goyle seemed to take offence to that as Crabbe bashfully put his hands behind his back. "Shut it Potter," declared Malfoy as he tossed the book to the ground. "Don't go picking fights you can't win; I doubt in any of this filth you overcame three on one odds."

"Three on two," corrected Harry.

"Please, I don't even consider the Mudblood to be on our level."

An elongated sigh escaped Harry's lips as he closed the book that he had been reading and pushed himself up from the table. With purposeful strides he walked around the furniture and caught Hermione's eyes on the way past. He could tell that she was pleading with him not to do anything he'd regret. Harry couldn't care and as he closed the gap and pulled his arm back, consequences be damned.

...

Dumbledore looked at the two students standing in his office. Without a doubt word had spread regarding the incident and he didn't doubt that word would even spread to parents and potentially even the press. Ever since his return to the magical world there had been a buzz about Harry Potter, mostly he blamed Hagrid for practically shouting in the Leaky Cauldron that he was accompanying Harry Potter of all people.

Subtlety was not Hagrid's forte.

Dumbledore gazed at Harry, the boy in front of him showing no compassion for the other student in the room. Considering the environment that Harry had grown up in he pondered whether the boy knew what compassion was. The boy needed to be taught that violence wasn't necessarily the answer. The Headmaster however would deem fit whether Harry's actions were justified momentarily.

Looking at Draco Malfoy, the boy had definitely seen better days. The blood splashed on his robes looked as if they had come directly from his nose, which Albus had been informed was the result of the breakage that Harry had made with his bare fist. Before having come to be before him, one of the professors had managed to both fix the broken nose and stop the bleeding, but it was clear that the young Malfoy was intimidated by the boy next to him.

Dumbledore could only sigh with the knowledge that he would soon be hearing from Lucius.

"Now, tell me very clearly what happened," Dumbledore said slowly.

"He attacked me!" shouted Draco. The blond-haired boy looked as if he was going to elaborate when Harry looked in his direction with cold eyes that made the boy flinch. Dumbledore couldn't help but scowl as he looked at those eyes, there was no remorse for his actions and it looked as if the circumstance called for it he would repeat the act once more.

"Harry, please tell me what happened," said Albus.

"It's true," said Harry as he turned to look at the Headmaster, his eyes still cold and venomous. "I punched Draco in the face and broke his nose, had it not broken the first time I likely would have punched him again in order to ensure that it was broken."

"And why did you assault Draco?" asked Dumbledore.

"He called Hermione Granger a mudblood."

Dumbledore's glare shifted to Draco Malfoy who suddenly seemed to become even less comfortable than he already had been. He suddenly could understand the hostility that Harry was radiating was indeed warranted, but either way punishment needed to be handed out. "Both of you will serve detention tonight and I will have twenty points removed from each of your houses," declared Dumbledore.

"Why am I being punished?" asked Draco.

"Other than the fact you insulted my friend with the most venomous word in your vocabulary," said Harry, glaring at Draco once more.

"Mister Malfoy, you called one of your fellow students a title unbefitting of this school," announced Dumbledore. "I trust after tonight we will have no more instances of such language being used in Hogwarts. Now, I expect you two in the Great Hall at Nine where Professor Flitwick will observe your detention. You're dismissed."

Malfoy was first to leave, not wanting to be in the office for a second longer than he had to. Harry remained rooted to the spot however as he looked at Dumbledore. "Just so we're clear, if he steps out of place again I won't be so gentle," declared Harry.

"I would advise against that," stated Albus.

"And I would neglect your advice in that situation," said Harry. "I don't have many friends Professor, but I'll be damned if they get assaulted in front of me, physically or verbally. This was just the first lesson, I hope I don't have to give another."

Harry turned and moved towards the exit pondering what the Headmaster truly thought of his actions. On one hand he had clearly defiled the rules of the school by assaulting another student; were his actions justified? He thought so, but in the eyes of the Headmaster it was likely a different story. He also had the scolding from McGonagall to look forward to.

Joy.

Upon exiting the office, Harry wasn't surprised by the fact that Hermione was waiting for him alongside the massive collection of Harry Potter Adventure books. He was however taken back when he found that Hermione wasn't alone. "Hey Susan," he said politely.

"Harry, I heard what happened, are you alright?" asked Susan.

"He's fine, Malfoy's the wounded one," said Hermione as she crossed her arms. Harry assumed that Hermione had been repeating that answer for a while now since Susan looked less than convinced.

"Mostly I think I hurt his pride, the nose was just an added benefit," said Harry. "Don't imagine he'd actually ever been struck before, considering how much he cried."

"Are you in trouble?" asked Hermione.

"Twenty points taken off and detention tonight, considering I got a good hit in I'm not too upset," said Harry with a shrug of his shoulders. "I take it you two know each other."

"We sat together on the train, and don't change the subject," said Hermione.

"I thought the subject had finished," said Harry casually, trying to ease the tension somewhat. "He had it coming and I'd do it again in a heartbeat."

"Why'd you do it?" asked Susan.

Harry noticed Hermione glance towards her feet and he felt that he shouldn't go over the top in front of his friend. "He just said something he shouldn't have said, something that pushed me over the edge. I'd suggest just leaving it at that."

Susan nodded in understanding as she looked at the collection of short novels by Hermione's side. "Are these what I think they are?" she asked standing next to the books which stood nearly three feet in height when stacked upon one another.

"I imagine they are," said Harry.

"Do you have _Harry Potter and the Night of the Druid_?"

"…Excuse me?"

"It's the only one I haven't read," said Susan before realizing what she was saying.

"Here you go," said Hermione having already pulled it out of the pile. Susan quickly took it and started walking away with it.

"Give it back to me on Monday," said Harry which only seemed to make the Hufflepuff student walk away quicker. He turned to see Hermione pouting at him. "What?"

"Couldn't you see she was embarrassed?"

"Couldn't you see I was ensuring that my book got returned? Anyways, we should head back to the tower. Can you give me a hand?" Harry asked gesturing towards the stack of books.

"Sure," said Hermione as Harry picked up half a dozen books, not wanting to show off too much in regards to magic by making them float behind him. Hermione added her assistance by putting several books on top of his pile, followed by a few more. Then a couple more. The some more again.

"Uhh, Hermione?" said Harry as he found his view obstructed by the entire collection blocking his view.

"Come on now, I'll direct you where to go," said Hermione as she started walking away. Harry, seeing no other option, gave pursuit. Hidden behind his pile of books his smile was hidden from view and he couldn't help but feel that this was Hermione's own way of punishing him. Considering he had done this walk more times than he could remember he was quite familiar with the route from Dumbledore's office to the Gryffindor common room, so it wasn't that terrible. He played with the idea of tripping over his own feet and asking Hermione why she had caused such an accident but opted not to.

Their march to the tower went uninterrupted and the only real words that were spoken between them were Hermione giving instructions to turn left, right and to be careful of the stairs. Things were going smoothly however until upon one flight of stairs everything began to move. "Hermione, what's happening?" he asked.

"The staircase is moving," stated Hermione as she gripped at the railing. Harry meanwhile had gone still as he knew exactly what staircase they were on and exactly where it would lead. As it came to a halt, Harry waited for Hermione's instruction. Surprisingly, she seemed to know where they were as well. "Harry, what should we do?"

"Wait it out," said Harry. "The stairs have got to move back eventually and the roundabout way will take about ten minutes, provided the stairs that go that way are in the right position." Putting down his stash, Harry was taken back by the fact that Hermione had not put the entire collection into his arms but rather had taken a few for herself. Upon further inspection however he discovered that those tomes weren't of his personal collection, but rather the runes books they had been looking through earlier. With a sigh he sat down next to the books and picked off the top one.

"What are you doing?" asked Hermione.

"What better way to wait out the time then learn about my adventures with the Nargles…Nargles?" repeated Harry as he reread the title of the book.

"Something wrong?" asked Hermione as she took a seat next to him, putting down the books she was carrying as she did so.

"Trust me, you don't want to know," said Harry as another sigh escaped his lips. This was not going to be a fun read.

...

Sunday morning Harry found himself out of bed at an earlier than normal hour, the rest of his dorm well and truly enjoying the blissful sleep they were in. Even Ron was quieter than normal. Dressing himself in some shorts and a shirt that he had taken the time to purchase in Hogsmeade before going to the bookstore, Harry entered the common room and stretched his arms above his head, a satisfactory click ringing out from his shoulders. Rolling his head from side to side he headed to the exit and started his walk down to the castle grounds.

Once his feet touched the grass he took off at a moderate pace, jogging to the sound of a song that had yet to be written. Heading down the hill he pondered the route he should take before finally opting to head down to the lake. It was the scenario in where he had saved the life of Fleur's sister if the pre-match stipulations were to be believed. Whether or not the chosen beneath the water were actually in danger during the tournament was hard to believe, but Fleur's sister (whose name he couldn't recall for the life of him) was part Veela, which Hermione had later informed him were fire elemental magical beings. Being under the water for such a long period of time would have been dangerous even if their safety was assured.

If not, would he have to go through the tournament again in order to rescue her once more? Shaking his head from side to side he figured that these were questions for another time.

Upon reaching the lake he paused to catch his breath, his hands collapsing to his knees as he inhaled deeply. He had gotten used to the small form he had found himself in yet before absorbing himself in Wood's ever familiar Quidditch practices and the intense games themselves he wasn't the fittest of kids. Even during the opening feast he had eaten only the barest minimal as his stomach wasn't adjusted to the huge quantities available to him; hence due to the lack of energy entering his system he was unable to perform at his peak.

As he looked over the lake he felt the urge to steal one of the school broom's and soar inches above the surface so that his toes barely scraped the water. They would have their first flying lesson tomorrow after Neville would have his Remembrall sent to him by his grandmother. He would then fall from his broom during class but Harry highly doubted that Draco would have the courage to steal Neville's gift without fear of the consequences that would come.

That in turn likely meant that Harry wouldn't get the chance to show off and impress Professor McGonagall. Biting at the inside of his lip he turned his attention back to the castle. He only got onto the Quidditch team because of his fluke first time round. He figured if things were to change then there would be tryouts for the position and unless Wood was desperate then first years wouldn't be permitted to try for the vacant Seeker.

This wasn't the problem in and of itself, Harry wasn't too fussed about joining the Quidditch team straight away, and the amount of time Oliver had him training was absurd at times. The more troubling thing was Professor Quirrell's blatant attempt at murdering him during his first match. If the Possessed Professor...

"Possessed Professor, posethed profether poth..."

Harry gave up on his new found tounge twister.

Back on track, Harry figured that Voldemort had given Quirrell instructions to kill him without making it too obvious. Why he would try to do so in front of an audience where several members of the staff and even most of the students could probably cast a levitation charm and prevent him from crashing to his death. The thing though was whether or not the terrible excuse for a teacher would try something else if he wasn't able to catch him flying. Just how more vigilant would he have to be when the turban wearing professor was around?

Harry scratched at the back of his head, knowing that he was probably over thinking things. Still though he had to contemplate the possibility. Unfortunately without the power of Divination he would have to wait and see what would happen. With a sigh he braced himself as he battled his way back up to the castle. Was it wrong that he hoped that Wood would be desperate.

...

Harry watched as Neville tumbled from the sky and crashed to the ground, his body bouncing awkwardly along with the distinctive crack signalling the breakage of his wrist. It caused many of the students around him to wince back but it was to be expected, they were only eleven years old after all. Considering the amount he had seen in the years to come, a broken wrist was not that big of a deal.

Madam Hooch shouted at everyone to remain grounded until she returned and Harry intended to do just that this time. Instead he took the opportunity of the confusion to locate Neville's Remembrall, picking it up before Malfoy contemplated the idea of stealing it. Harry doubted Malfoy had the courage, but he hadn't pushed for any more intimidating during the detention they had served together, opting to spend the time questioning Professor Flitwick about dueling tactics. While the diminutive Professor had been taken aback, Harry had eventually spent most of his 'punishment' having a casual chat.

General murmur started breaking out amongst the students as they waited for their flying teacher to return. "That was bonkers, wasn't it, Harry," said Ron shuffling himself closer to the scarred boy.

"Could have happened to anyone," he said with a shrug of the shoulders. "Hopefully it won't discourage him further down the track."

"What do you mean?" asked Ron.

"Well he just had his wrist broken," said Harry. "Even if it can be fixed in a few minutes it's still going to weigh heavily on his mind. Heck, look around at everyone else and you can see that they're shaken by what happened."

"Well I'm going to be fine," said Ron brashly. "My brothers have been flying since I was a kid, no way am I going to fall off."

Harry said nothing as he was simply going to watch and see if Murphy's Law took effect.

Instead seeing that a few of the other students had overheard Ron and were coming over for flying advice. Harry took this opportunity to slink back in the crowd to where Hermione was, the girl practically hugging her broom for dear life. "Nervous?" he asked. Hermione could only manage a timid nod of the head. "Don't be, it's just like riding a bike."

"I never had a bike."

"Neither did I, so forget about that and think of walking," said Harry wondering if this was a better comparison. "At first we fell on our arse over and over again, but we kept trying because it was in our nature as a human. Now, if you were back home your parents may have gotten you a bike. Again ,you would fall over and over after you got rid of your training wheels. Instead of a bike, we have brooms, and trust me, there are no training wheels."

"Doesn't that make it more dangerous?" asked Hermione.

"It does," said Harry casually putting a reassuring hand on Hermione's shoulder. "We will fall and we will get back up and at the end of the day we will have cuts, bruises and all manner of injuries. But you know what?"

"What?"

"We're going to have a hell of a lot of fun doing it and when you're soaring above the ground, the wind in your hair you're going to love every minute of it."

"You mean that?" asked Hermione as the class spotted Madam Hooch returning from the infirmary.

"Find out for yourself."


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

...

The week came and went for Harry, spending his days with Hermione and Susan (who had been as gracious as to return his book to him). Trusting in his fellow Gryffindor students, the elaborate collection of books detailing the life he had not lived sat in the corner of the common room, and it wasn't strange to find a couple of students reading the fictional stories after a hard day of work. Fred and George had even gotten into the acting scene as Lee Jordan read aloud, one of the Weasley's portraying young Harry while the other did the necessary side characters as ludicrous as possible. They had even asked Harry if he would like to star in the show as a background character (there was no chance of him being the star). Harry wholeheartedly agreed that the life of a main character wasn't for him and also turned down the supportive role.

Instead Harry chose to be a part of the crowd and avoided any opportunity when an extra character was required and the Weasley Twins would coerce someone onto their impromptu stage. It had been quite hilarious when they required a female adventurer and had talked Katie Bell on stage with them. The girl had been flustered at first but when Lee had exclaimed the line 'Then Harry kissed her' Fred had wasted no time in planting his lips on Katie's. He then proceeded to run around the common room while every other student ducked for cover from the innumerable amount of hexes that Katie had in her arsenal.

Neville had been hiccuping bubbles all night.

Dean had bats crawling out of his nose.

George had tried to protect his brother in a truly noble act of courage. His heroism was rewarded with him being hoisted in the air by his underwear.

Fred, poor poor Fred. Ghost stories had nothing on the horrors that happened to Fred that night.

Shaking out of his funk, Harry focused once more in front of the complex array of seals in front of him. He theorized that everything was on point provided that what he had researched over the week was correct. Unfortunately it wasn't something that he could double check with any of the teachers for clarification. He merely hoped there weren't any serious side effects.

That was a job for that night however and he would require the assistance of both Fred and George in order to ensure that he wasn't distracted during the delicate process. Essentially he was going to be using them as Filch bait. The best kind of bait.

Rolling up the parchment and putting it in his drawer, Harry exited the room into the corridor where the rest of the Gryffindor students currently were. There was a mild drizzle of rain outside, but it was not the reason as to why everyone was holed indoors. Tables and chairs had been lined up along the room where the Wizarding Chess competition was being held for the chance to represent the house.

The previous night Professor Dumbledore had announced the competition, and that each house would need to deliver four representatives to compete the following weekend in what he hoped would be an annual competition. Professor McGonagall then had put up a sheet of parchment in the common room where all students wishing to compete for Gryffindor were to sign their name. She declared that they would play a round robin mock tournament between the students interested until four students scored ten wins. Not the best system imaginable, but for the situation it would do. Harry was sure the Transfiguration teacher would have something better planned the following year.

Ron had done his best into talking Harry into competing, but he wouldn't for the life of him. He understood the game well enough but didn't particularly feel like embarrassing himself by having the most losses. Judging by the scoreboard which the ever faithful Lee Jordan was keeping, the people currently competing for that position were Percy Weasley (who as a Prefect had felt obliged to represent the house) and Hermione Granger.

Harry was stumped as he saw the one lone win next to Hermione's name with even Neville having scored three. Harry just shrugged his shoulders, it just went to show that book smarts didn't translate into chess smarts...or something like that.

Walking over to where Hermione and Ron were currently doing battle it was clear that Hermione was out of her depth. On the other side of the leaderboard Ron was currently sitting in second position with seven wins beneath a sixth year student who Harry had never even had the chance to meet. Hence he didn't bother remembering the name.

"Bishop to E4," declared Hermione, her piece moving across the board before elaborately destroying the pawn she had targeted. To Harry it seemed as if Hermione had gotten over the fact the pieces broke each other when they fixed themselves at the end of the game to be used again.

"Knight to E4," declared Ron happy to have sacrificed his pawn to take out the more dangerous piece.

"Crumpets," cursed Hermione, Harry having to suppress a giggle against the pitiful excuse of a replacement swear word. "What should I do?"

"I'd tell you to take out his castle but that would be against the rules," said Harry before walking away. The small bit of advice he had given would allow her to survive a couple extra turns, but her side of the board was a scrambled mess; Ron would finish her in a few minutes.

"Checkmate," declared Neville as his Queen moved into position. A small round of applause went out as Percy failed to believe that a first year had beaten him, for the third time that afternoon, after having been defeated by his younger brother and having given Hermione her only win for the day. It seemed chess skill just didn't run in the family.

Moving to the end of the room, Harry opted to rest against the wall that Professor McGonagall was watching from, the elderly witch overlooking the tournament with a keen eye. "Everything going alright?" he asked.

"Indeed Mister Potter, and I believe I have you to thank for this show of skill," said Minerva. "As such I find it quite odd that you chose not to compete in a competition of your own creation."

"I merely found it odd that houses only competed in Quidditch, I offered a suggestion that built into this," said Harry with a shrug. "I'm absolute rubbish at chess though in a one on one setting, goodness knows what I'd be like with a crowd."

"Who knows indeed," mused Professor McGonagall. "Maybe next year you could try out for the Quidditch team, provided you can perform well on a broom in front of a crowd."

"Madam Hooch said I was a natural on a broom," said Harry. "Hermione said it was in my blood, whatever that means."

"Your father played for Gryffindor," declared Minerva. "He was fierce on the pitch and helped Gryffindor to many victories."

"Really, could you tell me more?" asked Harry honestly. Thus the rest of the chess tournament was spent with Harry listening to the Gryffindor Head of House elaborate on how his father played Quidditch, something which he was more than happy to listen to.

...

Sitting in the lounge, Harry stared at the fireplace as it burned brightly, illuminating the room. Darkness had settled over the castle and if Harry was to hazard a guess he'd say that midnight was not too far off.

The perfect time for a prank.

With his parchment stuffed in his pocket he had pondered another task that would require his attention, one which was in his bedroom right at that moment. Scabbers the rat needed to die, but not too soon. It was because of Peter going with the Weasley's to Egypt and headlining the Daily Prophet that Sirius would notice his former friend and break free.

Harry wasn't so dull as to believe that he could get Sirius out of Azkaban any other way and he had no knowledge of the magical legal system. This unfortunately was just one of those things that he would have to wait out until the appropriate time. Sirius had survived that long in Azkaban the first time round so there was no doubt that he would do so again.

The sound of symmetrical footsteps alerted Harry that it was time and turning his head he was able to make out the distinctive features of the Weasley Twins. "Got the map?" Harry asked as he got off the lounge.

"You know it," they said in unison.

"Excellent."

Their movements through the halls were swift yet silent, the brothers seemingly having to grow accustomed to sneaking around. With the use of the map, they avoided everyone who was up and at it at that time of night as they made their way to the dining hall. "Alright guys, I'm counting on you two to make sure I'm not disturbed by anyone," said Harry to the twins.

"Don't worry, Harry."

"We'll make sure no one gets in."

And like that the two parties split up with Harry trusting the two Weasley boys with his safety. Moving over to the Slytherin table he pulled out his wand and cast a _Lumos_ charm before pulling the parchment out of his pocket. With one final look over to the door, Harry began his work.

Minutes trickled by as Harry delicately went about his task. While the prank itself would be glorious he was well aware that a simple mistake could have disastrous consequences. Every move was made precisely and triple checked, just to make sure everything would be alright. When he was halfway done, however, he heard something which made beads of sweat form on his brow.

Turning his head, he found himself looking at Ms Norris, Filch's ever faithful watch cat. Harry couldn't blame the twins for allowing the cat to get past their efforts, he'd never checked to see whether the feline was trackable on the Marauder's Map and he had told them that he wasn't to be disturbed by anyone, not anything.

Thus he forgave them.

The main problem now was the cat in front of him. Biting at his lip, he raised his wand at the feline before conjuring a ball of yarn. "You're a cat right, you like yarn?" said Harry trying to coax Ms Norris. The cat merely answered by batting the ball to the side, her eyes never leaving Harry.

"Alright, that's just creepy," said Harry before reaching out. "You want a scratch behind the ear?"

Ms Norris responded by trying to claw the outstretched hand.

"There's no pleasing you, is there."

"Meow."

"If you want something to eat you're going to have to go to the kitchens and get the elves to make you something."

"Meow. Meow."

"No I'm not breaking into the kitchen for you."

"Meow."

"I'm sure Filch feeds you enough."

Silence.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Meow."

"Alright, now you're being silly. Now I'm going to finish up here. Then I'll be out of your way and since you're not going to play with my yarn can I have it back, I can use it later."

"Meow."

"Thank you."

...

Harry stifled a yawn and tried to pay attention to the events going on in front of him. Oliver Wood had decided that he would hold Tryouts for the Quidditch team and had announced it the previous day after the chess tournament had ended (Ron stoked at having made the team and making the bold declaration that he would represent Gryffindor in every chess tournament while he was at Hogwarts). Everybody was encouraged to put their hand up and they did just that, the competitive spirit from the tabletop quite high.

Sadly it didn't translate well onto the Quidditch pitch.

Having borrowed practically every broom owned by the school, dozens of students had struggled with the speed that Wood wanted of them along with the simplest of tactics. Though his definition of simple likely wasn't the same as the rest of the house. Thankfully for some of the more complicated plays the students were only a few metres off the ground. Any more and the falls they had would have likely put them in the Hospital Wing.

Harry could see the look of anguish on Wood's face as he told the potential players to have a break. He knew why; none of them were near the skill level required to win against any of the other houses. He also knew that Wood didn't dare break his other players up, the twins worked magic between each other in regards to whacking the bludgers, and the Quaffle runners had too much chemistry to force them to try and team up with somebody new.

Harry's competitiveness began to boil.

"Hey Hermione, let's go for a ride," said Harry, ushering the brown-haired witch (who was just as tired as he was) down to the pitch. He was curious as to why the young girl had opted to spend her morning watching people flying but chose not to question it.

"But first years can't be selected," said Hermione.

"Who said we're trying out, we're just going to have a bit of fun while they have a rest," said Harry. Hermione, seeing nothing wrong with that started making it down to the stand they had been watching on. Harry took the opportunity to consider the girl behind him, by all means she was more outgoing than the original timeline to the point where she was almost the same after the troll incident (which he hoped to have no part of this time round). Her friendship with Susan appeared to be helping as the young Bones was highly curious about the Muggle world. Like with any subject, Hermione had all the answers.

Walking past the broken spirited Gryffindors, Harry's eyes spotted the Weasley Twins standing shoulder to shoulder. "Up bright and early today, Harry," said one of them.

"Would've thought that you'd be in bed for a few more hours yet," said the other.

"And listen to your brother snore his lungs out, I rather watch the comedy show," he said, slyly indicating the group sitting on the grass.

"Comedy indeed."

"Stay out of trouble now."

"We do have to ask..."

"As we forgot to last night..."

"Mischief managed?" they asked in unison.

"Mischief managed," answered Harry, a grin appearing on the twins before they walked over to their captain stride by stride. "I really need to find a way to tell them apart."

"Good luck with that," said Hermione dryly and Harry had the feeling that she wanted to question him about what the twins had asked, but would wait for a different moment. Thus in silence they walked to where the Gryffindor students had dumped their brooms and made their selections, although it was mildly hilarious when Harry commanded 'Up' that several brooms leapt at him.

"We're not going that high are we?" asked Hermione.

"Na, ten metres tops," said Harry knowing full well that they would probably go a lot higher, he just needed to get Hermione off the ground to start with. Looking to the side, a sinister smirk crossed his face as he walked over and picked up the maroon sphere.

"What's that?"

"If my Quidditch knowledge is on top of it's game, I'd say that this is the quaffle," said Harry as he mounted his broom. "We'll just have a friendly game of aerial catch."

Hermione seemed unsure of herself but didn't dispute the idea as she got on her broom. Harry watched as she started levitating off the ground and recalled how much progress Hermione had made during their first lesson. He never recalled flying lessons with Madam Hooch as he had already been selected for the Quidditch team first time round but Hermione hadn't particularly enjoyed the idea of flying from memory. Since he had been there to walk her through the steps piece by piece however, it must have affected her view on the whole thing if the smile on her face was anything to go by.

Lifting off the ground, Harry tossed the ball between his hands. He'd never really contemplated a position outside of Seeker but imagined that being a Chaser would be a lot more stressful in ways considering the rough nature of Quidditch. Tossing those thoughts to the side, Harry steered his broom relatively close to where Hermione was before lobbing the ball to her. Harry couldn't help but laugh as Hermione fumbled and nearly dropped the quaffle, only just managing to scoop it under her arm while using her other hand to keep grip of the broom. "Easy now," said Harry as he guided his broom closer before holding his arms apart.

"How are you keeping balance?" asked Hermione as she stabilized herself.

"I'm just awesome like that," said Harry cheekily, causing Hermione to throw the ball as hard as she could at the floating boy. Due to pitiful arm strength however Harry had little trouble catching the projectile before lobbing it back. Thus they continued their little game, tossing the quaffle back and forth while slowly gliding across the pitch. Hermione had little trouble using her smarts to know where to throw it when Harry opted to try a different tactic. Whether it was an increase in velocity, a drop in altitude or a sharp deviation, Hermione knew exactly where to throw it.

This of course didn't help, considering Hermione wasn't able to make the distance on some of the longer throws.

"Get down from there!" shouted Wood from down below, the rest of the team seemingly having had enough of a break before the captain put them through the ring around once more. Harry could see from up above though that the numbers had dwindled somewhat; many of the potential players having called it quits during their break.

"Alright then, let's go Hermione," said Harry only before a shrill scream filled the air, Hermione's broom rocketing into the air with extreme speed before trying to buck her off as if she was riding a rodeo bull. "HERMIONE!"

Harry's shout of rage echoed out as he shot upwards towards where Hermione was before he felt his heart stop momentarily as Hermione's grip faltered and she began to fall. Harry was moving before the people on the ground had even begun to react as Hermione fell through the air, picking up speed with every passing second.

The wind bit into Harry's skin as he calculated how much time they had; sadly there wasn't much. Pushing the broom with every ounce of speed it could muster, Harry angled it diagonally as he got closer to Hermione, ever passing moment inching ever closer. Her screams grew louder as she flailed through the air.

Reaching out, Harry could see just how close the ground was and knew he had no more than a handful of seconds. Angling the broom differently, Harry dove vertically downwards, surpassing Hermione before he adjusted himself to be perpendicular to the ground, gliding only a few feet from the ground. He was aware this was going to hurt as he shot forward with his arms outstretched in front of him.

Hermione crashed into his arms forcing the nose of the broom to shoot downwards before smashing into the ground. The sound of wood breaking rang out as Harry and Hermione fell through the air before bouncing off the ground, thankfully not going splat in the process. It was hard enough however that on the third bounce the world went black for Harry Potter.

...

As Harry opened his eyes, despite missing his glasses, he could still make out the ceiling as one that he had wanted to avoid as much as possible this time round. _'Hospital Wing,_ ' he thought groggily as he allowed himself to take a couple of deep inhales. The change in his breathing however was somehow loud enough for the resident nurse to pick up on.

"You're up, Mister Potter," declared Madam Pomfrey as she bustled her way over, a tray of potions in her hand. "I must say that I hadn't actually expected a recovery quite so soon, but it seems both you and Miss Granger are full of surprises."

"Hermione?" said Harry as he pushed himself into a sitting position before fumbling for his glasses, eventually wrapping his fingers around the frame.

"Arguably, she took a substantial amount less damage than you did and if what I hear is correct I believe she has you to thank for even being able to get here in the first place," she said. "Quite a feat of heroism if the rumours are to be believed."

"I hope it hasn't been blown too far out of proportion," said Harry as he put on his glasses before being handed a glass. "On a scale of one to ten how bad is this going to taste?"

"Nine."

"Thought so," said Harry before tossing his head back and downing the entire potion, the bitter after taste burning at his taste buds. "I'd refer to that as a six."

"Good, cause this one goes beyond your scale."

"Great...let's get this over with."

Madam Pomfrey handed over the vial and Harry chose not to sniff it beforehand knowing full well how vile these things could smell. Sharply inhaling, Harry drank from the glass and immediately had to fight the urge to spit it back out. Willpower overruling, he managed to swallow the concoction, earning a small smile from the nurse who took away the vial and removed the tray. As she walked towards her office, a door to the ward opened up, revealing both Hermione and Dumbledore, the latter moving forward with purposeful strides.

Hermione's steps were much smaller.

"Good to see you, Harry," said Dumbledore, Hermione timidly standing behind him. "It seems you have taken to Madam Pomfrey's potions much quicker than many other students."

"Considering the whole nearly dying thing, I think taking a couple of awful tasting potions is the worst of my problems," said Harry as he adjusted himself. The hospital beds were not the comfiest things in the school by any means.

"Yes, you managed to prevent a major accident and for that I must thank you," said Dumbledore sincerely. "Young Miss Granger here owes you her life."

"Please, I saw a friend in need, I acted accordingly," said Harry.

"With that attitude I imagine the Sorting Hat may have debated putting you in Hufflepuff," mused Dumbledore. "I have come however for a few reasons and first and foremostly I believe Miss Granger has something to say."

Harry watched as Hermione stepped out of Dumbledore's shadow, white knuckles gripping at her robes. The residential nurse had informed Harry that Hermione had been conscious for a few days prior to his awakening. Harry knew that during that time Hermione would likely have struggled to eat, sleep and even study while he lay comatose. "Harry..." said Hermione softly as tears began to well in her eyes.

Harry swung his legs over the side of the bed before she could continue, planting his feet on the ground before quickly closing the gap between them and embracing Hermione in a hug. The tears that had threatened to fall earlier began streaming down her face as Harry embraced her. "Thank you," she managed to say between sobs.

They stood there for a minute, Dumbledore taking a stroll around the rest of the Wing in order to give them a moment of privacy. When he had returned the children hadn't moved from the spot but Hermione's sobbing had decreased in volume and frequency. Clearing his throat, Hermione and Harry awkwardly released one another. "Before I go there is one other piece of information I wish to both share and take from you," said Dumbledore. "Tell me Harry, have you heard of the Potter Club?"

"Potter Club?" repeated Harry tearing his eyes away from Hermione who was doing her best to compose herself. "I haven't heard of them, sir, and I'm a little more worried that I have a group of stalkers using my name as a banner."

"It might not be the case," said Albus. "What their intention is towards you I'm unsure, but by their actions during breakfast last Monday is anything to go by I believe that they are using your name for the fame that it carries."

"I'm not sure what you mean sir," said Harry having mentally prepared himself for this confrontation.

"Allow me to explain," said Dumbledore.

...

 _Monday mornings were always something to behold as students looked a little worse for wear after a weekend of relaxation. The Headmaster could always spot out the students who had left assignments until the last minute by the way they shuffled their feet and had bags under their eyes._

 _As he partook of the feast in front of him he nearly found himself spitting out his breakfast as a four foot wide rainbow began to spread from one end of the Slytherin table to the other. A number of verbal slander began from the cunning students while the rest of the hall began to both snigger and in several cases just burst into laughter, laughter which was contagious._

 _It was when the laughter was at it's peak that golden letters began to shine along the rainbow , eventually spelling out the words POTTER CLUB. As soon as the message was delivered the rainbow exploded in a plethora of coloured dust that rained down over the entire hall, bathing everyone in shades of blue, red and yellow._

 _Needless to say, nobody made it to first period on time._

 _..._

"Had you been there at the time, Harry, I believe that you would have been interrogated by both your peers and staff members, however considering you were temporarily out of action there is no need for anyone to place the blame on you," concluded Dumbledore.

"I would almost consider it praise considering how complicated such magic would likely be," said Harry. "I barely know the basics at the moment and somehow I think conjuring a rainbow isn't covered in first year topics."

"Quite right you are, but in moments of pandemonium everyone looks for someone to blame," said Dumbledore. "If you hear anything in regards to this 'club' please inform me immediately."

"Will do sir, but I have to ask, what do you think they want? What's their goal?"

"If I were to hazard a guess, it's to have a laugh. That however may just be the misconception of an elderly man. If you'll excuse me, I have other appointments I must attend to," said Dumbledore dismissing himself.

As he left, the awkwardness between Hermione and Harry once again crept into the air before Harry hopped back onto the bed. "I imagine I'm going to have to stay here for another night for them to make sure I'm fine, would you like to stay for a while? I'll probably be bored out of my mind otherwise."

Hermione allowed a smile to creep over her face as she joined Harry on the hospital bed, the mattress only just big enough for the two of them to sit on. The close proximity however became even closer as Harry placed a comforting arm around Hermione allowing her to rest her head on his shoulder.

It wouldn't be much later that the two of them fell into a light sleep. Madam Pomfrey walked out of her office to find them in such a state and as quietly as she could wheeled a privacy screen in front of the bed. No need for rumours to start spreading after all.


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

 **...**

Harry hadn't expected to be allowed to leave the Hospital Wing that afternoon but lo and behold, miracles did happen. During the rest of his visit he had been set upon by Neville, Susan, both Fred and George and finally Ron, the youngest of the Weasley boys spending a good hour with Harry. However, his time there was nothing compared to the hours that Hermione stayed by his side, even choosing to skip classes in order to remain with him.

This was unprecedented. Had so much changed already that Hermione was not attending lessons?

Harry wasn't sure whether he was happy with the change or not.

During their time alone they discussed what had happened with Hermione's broom. Hermione stated that Professor Flitwick had taken the time to look over the flying equipment and found that it hadn't been tampered with. Harry couldn't help but believe that Quirrell was responsible but hadn't included that in the discussion. Why he had gone for Hermione though was a troubling thought. Harry assumed that Quirrell had decided to spend some time outside of the castle and had spotted them flying and just misaimed his curse. Considering Harry hadn't seen the possessed professor at the time he had no clue just how far away the terrible teacher was.

Thankfully the conversation had defused when Hermione had said that she had chosen not to send a letter to her parents regarding the ordeal. She had explained that such an event would have her pulled out of school and away from the magical world, to live out the rest of her life as a normal human with a gift she could never develop. Harry respected her decision and when they had finally been shooed out of the infirmary he had made the cheeky joke that Hermione should send a letter to her parents regarding the fact that she now had a boyfriend in him.

Considering the response he had gotten wasn't a bop over the head but rather a crimson blush, Harry wondered whether she'd contemplated the idea of having a boyfriend. Heck, first time around during the Halloween incident she had fled to the girl's bathroom when Ron had said she didn't have any friends. Harry wasn't sure whether Ron and Hermione were on a friendly basis yet but he was certain that it would come in time. He doubted however that Ron would make the comment and force Hermione into danger.

At least that was a positive.

Upon entering the common room they found all eyes on them, one of those moments which they believed only happened in movies. They weren't sure where it began but a clap began to slowly ring out, followed by another person and then another before the whole room was sending the applause towards Harry.

He honestly didn't know how to take it and couldn't help but allow a small blush spread across his cheeks. Eventually the commotion began to die down before individual members of the house came up and said their spiel, revolving mostly around his courage, bravery and broom skill. He suddenly found that his female companion was no longer by his side and spared a glance across to see a number of girls ushering Hermione to one of the rooms; clearly gossip needed to be heard.

Part of him wished he had his father's Invisibility Cloak to go check in on that conversation.

"That was some amazing flying, Potter," said Wood, shaking Harry's hand, bringing the young boy back to the topic in front of him.. "You've got quite a bit of skill on a broom."

Harry shrugged. "I only picked one up for the first time a few weeks ago."

"Add that to the fact you were riding a substandard broom," acknowledged Oliver. "I know this is against protocol, but would you be interested if I were to ask Professor McGonagall whether we could bend the rules a bit and get you on the team? I'd hate to see such talent have to wait another year."

"Uhh, sure, that'd be great," said Harry.

"Excellent," said Oliver, and just like that he was off.

"What's this we hear?"

"Little Harry's going to be joining the team."

"Is such a thing allowed, Brother?"

"We'll just have to wait and find out."

Harry looked at the twins in front of him, both of them speaking as if rehearsing lines from a script. "I believe, however, that young Harry has something to discuss with us in private," said the one on the left.

"Why, whatever could you mean?" asked Harry.

"I believe that this is something we should interrogate him about in secrecy."

"I believe you are right."

Without warning the twin on the right had grabbed onto Harry's wrist and with surprising ease managed to fling him onto his shoulder and started marching him off, earning a couple laughs from the rest of the common room. Harry, for better or for worse, decided to play along. "I wondered how far up the evolutionary scale you guys were," he said cheekily.

"We're high enough," said one of them.

"The old tag and bag tactic is how we'll be getting all the ladies."

"Classy," said Harry as he was dragged into one of the boy's rooms before being deposited on the bed. "Usually you'd ask for a date first."

"Alright, Harry."

"We want answers."

"How'd you do it?" they asked in unison.

"Do what?"

"Fred, you take this one."

"Right," said Fred as he knelt to look Harry in the eye. Had this been any other situation the youngest person in the room would have been terrified. "What we want to know is what you did in order to get that rainbow to appear over the Slytherin table the other morning. Although the title, not the brightest thing imaginable."

Harry knew that the twins would be able to put one and one together and he had been counting on them to do just that. Had they not been able to figure out his prank then he would have questioned their intelligence. "Remember, I'm the son of Prongs," stated Harry as if that answered everything. "The Marauders left me a few secrets, but in their own, cryptic way. Before you ask me to show it to you just know it's charmed that only members of any of the family lines can see it."

"Very well," said Fred, believing Harry's lie. "So then what's your plan for Potter Club?"

"Basically have a bit of fun in a roundabout way," said Harry. "Just so you know, the reason I called it Potter club is to draw attention away from me, I mean it'd be pretty silly for the leader of a group to name it after themselves if they didn't want to get caught."

"So by using your name you're actually drawing the line of fire away from yourself," said Fred.

"Nice," added George.

"What I'm working on at the moment is initialising people without them knowing who the leaders are," said Harry.

"Leaders? So there are more working with you?"

"Well I was under the impression you two would be working alongside me in the long run. Only if you want to, of course."

"What kind of position would we be in? How high up the hierarchy?" asked Fred.

"If you think of it in Medieval terms, while I would be the King I would think of you two as my most trusted Knights, one of you as my sword and the other as my shield," declared Harry. "The only people above you for the moment would be the King and the Queen."

"Queen?" said both boys as one. Harry meanwhile could only smile.

...

"Harry, can you come with me?" asked Hermione forcefully. Of course her declaration was overheard by a number of people who began to share sly looks with one another. Hermione did her best to ignore the sniggers, but Harry could tell that they were slowly eating away at her.

Pushing himself up from the table he had been working at, Harry looked Hermione in the eye. "Lead on, fair lady," he said gesturing to the side elaborately. Hermione did just that, walking faster than Harry had assumed she would. Again he found himself wondering just what had been said in that private conversation that Hermione had been dragged off to.

Exiting the common room, Hermione simply took a few strides before taking a seat on the steps, Harry planting himself right beside her. "Harry," she said slowly. "Firstly, I want to say thank you again. I owe you my life."

"You don't owe me anything," said Harry. "Perhaps helping me catch up on the homework I missed out on, but other than that I don't expect anything from you."

"But I expect something from myself," stated Hermione. "I won't forget that I'm alive because of your actions, I'm not sure if anybody on the pitch knew a spell to slow me down, or if they even had their wands on them. Only you could have saved me, Harry, and you did."

Harry swallowed a lump in his throat.

"I really don't know how I can repay you for that and I don't think me helping you with essays and assignments would cover it, I know you're pretty smart on your own. Unfortunately that's all I can really offer except for one thing, and I'm not really sure I should ask considering how much trouble we could get in. However, I feel that I need to do this."

Harry at this point was sweating bullets as Hermione braced herself to ask the question she had pondered over for days.

"Can I join Potter Club?"

Harry blinked thrice before letting out a small chuckle. "Guess I couldn't hide it from you Hermione," he said. "What gave it away?"

"I think when you asked me to study in the library," said Hermione. "You went straight for something above and beyond what we're even meant to be thinking about studying at the moment. While I enjoyed tackling the subject, questions started to arise, mostly 'why'. I mean if we were pushing ahead with Potions or Transfiguration that would have made a lot more sense. So I figured there was a reason, a goal you were chasing."

"Do you know what the goal of the Potter Club is?" asked Harry.

"I don't, but if both the rainbow and the whoopie cushion are any indicator I'd have to guess that you just want to have a bit of fun. I mean you are the 'Boy Who Lived', but I don't think you're doing it just because you can get away with it." Harry nodded but remained silent as Hermione continued, "I also think that you named it after you to actually draw attention away from you, and something tells me that something will happen soon something that will throw everyone off your scent even further."

"Not a bad idea," said Harry haphazardly. "Now another question for you; on the pretense that I couldn't lie my way out of it, why not report me to one of the professors?"

"Had I not known you as well as I have, I might have," stated Hermione. "That time in the library though, the willingness to sneak out of school to buy a book of all things, not to mention standing up for me and punching Draco, I felt like the only girl in the world. Back home the only people who stuck up for me were my parents, I wasn't so blind. I could tell that I had no real friends. Eventually it was safer for them to find new friends and join in the picking on me. 'Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me.' That saying became my life, I blocked out everything except my thirst for knowledge. Heck, even before I got sorted I was reciting Hogwarts: A History to another student. I believed here that I would find friends, but once more I found myself becoming isolated. So to answer your question, Harry James Potter, I don't believe that friends should dob one another in."

"You know, you could have said that from the start," said Harry causing Hermione to giggle a bit.

"Sorry, when I'm nervous I just can't stop myself," said Hermione.

"Come here," said Harry as he looped his arm over Hermione's shoulder and dragged her in closer. The warmth of her body outweighed his own and he could feel his heart rate increase ever so slightly. "I know what it's like to not have friends and I have been hurt by a lot more than words, but that's in the past. We're wizards now. At the same time though we're kids. Do you ever remember getting a toy and playing with it more than anything else?"

"Yes," said Hermione. Harry guessed that she considered books to be toys.

"Well, I think this wand I recently got is a pretty neat toy and I've got seven years to learn how to play with it properly."

"So...Potter Club's objective is to play with magic?" asked Hermione.

"No, Potter Club is about learning magic that brings a smile to faces, and I intend to share a lot of smiles."

...

"Lady and gentlemen, welcome to the first official meeting of Potter Club. First and foremost, we do not speak of this meeting outside of this room, and we do not interact with Potter Club on the mind outside of this room. Secrecy is key as we are the heads that run the business, if we are to get caught then everything will fall apart."

"Little dramatic don't you think?"

"I thought it created the atmosphere quite well."

"It's got a bit of a James Bond feel about it."

"Who?"

"Muggle movie spy hero."

"Ahh...movie..."

"I think Dad told us about them before."

"Could've, he mentions a lot of things around the house."

"If I may draw your attention back to the meeting, thank you. Rule number one. We have to follow, above all else: our intentions are not to single out students and hurt them both physically or emotionally, we're not bullies."

"Question."

"Yes?"

"Are you saying that we cannot target individual students all together, or make a habit of targeting a single person over a long period of time?"

"Individuals can only be targeted on the pretense that they will likely laugh about it at a later date, so again nothing hurtful physically or mentally, the last thing we need is someone standing in the Owlery contemplating the quickest way to the ground level. Agreed?"

"Agreed."

"Good."

"Will this be information be passed on to other members of this little shindig?"

"Hermione?"

"I'm writing it all down now and will summarize and clarify after the meeting."

"Good, okay then, rule number two: never will we reveal our positions within Potter Club; as far as every other presenter is aware we are on the same level that they are."

"So apart from us, nobody knows that Harry Potter is the Head of the Potter Club?"

"I believe that's the idea, brother of mine."

"We do have to ponder however..."

"Why is this the case?"

"Boys, I asked that you speak in complete sentences beforehand. Please continue in that way until the meeting is over, you're then free to speak in whatever twin magic synchronicity you want."

"Yes, boss."

"As for the question, I myself will not participate as that would be out of place. I will however be the target for a few pranks. I expect you will be too, in time, in order to create the illusion that we are not a part of the club and avert curious eyes away from us. Also, since we know that these pranks will be going ahead and that we won't be heading to the Owlery for a distinctly disheartening purpose, they may be a little more...elaborate in nature."

"That's foreboding."

"Question."

"What now?"

"Two questions, actually."

"You can ask your question after Fred."

"I'm George."

"After George then."

"Okay."

"But I thought I was George?"

"Whoever you are, please ask your question."

"Right, how do we go about selecting and inducting new members into Potter club?"

"At the moment the only other person I have is Susan Bones, who I was able to convince into putting the whoopie cushion on Quirrell's chair..."

"You got Susan to do that?"

"Yeah, I sent her a letter explaining what she had to do and when to do it, and that failure would result in consequences. I hadn't actually planned far enough ahead for the possibility that Susan wouldn't do it. Answering your question, initial contact will be made through the post using school owls so that it can't be tracked that way. It would be pretty obvious if Hedwig kept sending letters to different students day after day."

"Fair point."

"Arguably it will be picked up on eventually, so we will need another way to contact our existing members and a way to bring new people into the group."

"I'm sure we can think of something."

"I'll look into it over the next couple of days and see if I can make some headway."

"Cheers, Hermione."

"No problem."

"Speaking of new members, off the top of your head, who do you want to join our society?"

"Lee Jordan."

"Katie Bell."

"Er-.I don't actually know who I should ask."

"It's alright, Hermione, we've only been here for a couple weeks, so it's okay. I'll have you write up the letters which will be sent out with the mail tomorrow morning. On it will be an assignment for each of them should they choose to accept. The main thing however is that one of you will be accompanying each of them."

"Dibs on Katie."

"Bugger, guess I've got Lee then."

"Wait, then who do I have?"

"You'll have to wait until tomorrow night to find out. Now, your mission for the evening is simple, each of you need to locate an area somewhere in the school and paint this insignia on a wall."

"I thought we were pranking people."

"We will, we just need them to know it's us."

"Isn't this design a little corny?"

"What do you mean?"

"Look at it."

"I have to agree with Fred on this one."

"I thought you said he was George."

"Did I?"

"Meanwhile, let's face the fact that your design for the Club is pretty bollocks."

"Fine then, George, you're in charge of the new design."

"But which one of us is George?"

"...Meeting adjourned!"

...

Vandalism.

What had she been thinking?

She was going to get expelled when they caught her, she didn't have a wizarding name or title to fall back on and she would have nobody to support her when all was said and done. There was no hope, they would track her down and she would be held accountable for her actions.

So why had she enjoyed herself so much the previous night?

Almost in response to her stress, a hand came up and touched her on the shoulder. Looking to the side she saw Harry giving her a warm smile. She knew that he couldn't say anything that could jeopardize their little operation, especially at the Sunday morning breakfast where prying eyes and ears were everywhere. Yet somehow his touch was enough to calm her down.

He gave a small nod of the head towards the Ravenclaw table and she followed his gaze to where her partner for the crime had been. Hermione had known where Cho was going to meet her but had had no idea if the second year student would have come. Thankfully she had and the two of them had done their best to avoid any and all obstacles before finding a pristine spot to begin their work. During their activities Cho had asked where Hermione had gotten the paint from and Hermione just stated that she had found it left on the ground. Funnily enough this was the icebreaker before they started conversing freely in hushed whispers. Turned out that Cho was going to be trying out for the Ravenclaw Quidditch team hoping to claim the vacant Seeker position. Cho learned of Hermione's love for books and was fascinated with the fact that the Muggle newspapers didn't have images that moved.

Little things which made for a highly entertaining night.

"Your attention please," bellowed Dumbledore and Hermione suddenly found all those nerves shoot to the surface once again. Harry's grip tightened slightly which reassured her somewhat. "Last night it would seem that the Potter Club got up to some more mischief, however they have vandalised school property in the process."

A hushed whisper spread around the students present before Dumbledore pulled out his wand and pointed it towards the roof. Three projections spread out, each of them showing an image of a school wall where giant letters were painted in light blue, purple and pink. The letters simply spelled out 'PC' however the downward stroke on the P was changed to look like a lightning bolt, one very similar to the scar etched across Harry's forehead.

Dumbledore looked as if he was going to continue but stopped himself beforehand as the sound of flapping wings began to grow, louder and louder with each passing second. Before anybody could figure out what was happening, hundreds, if not thousands of small birds flew into the great hall through the windows, causing everyone to look in the air in wonder. Nobody could tell what birds they were but the colours they came in blanketed the ceiling in stunning shades of yellow, green, blue, and red. Even the professors watched on in awe, several of them having deduced just what the birds actually were before they started colliding into one another and bursting in blazing glory.

With each explosion a small piece of paper twirled through the air, raining down upon the students, the younger one standing on their seats in an attempt to reach the tiny pamphlet before anyone else. As Hermione watched on with a smile on her face, Harry reached into his back pocket and pulled out one of pieces that he had held onto and passed it to her. Looking on one side showed the logo that one of the Weasley boys had created (she still had no idea which one was which) and on the other was a very simple message.

 _When called, will you answer?_

Hermione looked at Harry only to find his attention elsewhere. Following his line of sight she could see that Dumbledore had seemed to have lost all confidence in what he had wanted to say in light of this display. Flitwick was clapping and only stopped when Snape glared at him menacingly. McGonagall shared a smile with Professor Sprout while every other teacher was a mix of bedazzled and confused.

Hermione then sent her gaze down the table where the Gryffindor students seemed to be in high spirits, many of them asking one another whether they would be called on next. Fred and George were even complaining about why they hadn't been chosen yet which she couldn't help but smirk at.. Even Katie and Lee seemed jovialle and turning her attention to the Ravenclaw table she saw that Cho had a smile spreading from ear to ear.

All in all, she had to say that Potter Club's assignment had been a rousing success.

Provided they didn't get expelled of course.

...


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

...

September was drawing to an end and still the Potter Club seemed to be the central focus for most conversations. Nothing more had happened since the spectacular display featuring the conjured birds. However, no one could make anything of it but for the fact that it had been highly advanced magic.

This of course had sent a swarm of people to the library in an attempt to learn the same. Hermione had managed to get it down pat quite quickly but could only maintain control over a couple of birds before they started acting naturally, one even trying to nest in her hair. After this event, Hermione had taken an interest in Harry's magical ability.

She had a general grasp of her own skills at the moment but was unsure how much raw power she could exert. Reading over magical theory, she was aware on a basic level that there were three things to focus on; the intent, the strength and the precision. Her precision she knew was pinpoint along with her intent, hence she rarely used more strength than necessary. She would never brag about it but she held her technical skill as the highest in the class. Her strength however was something that would develop in time. The only was she could push it any further forward was with continual practice and exerting herself in certain aspects. Even if she didn't take this route her power would grow appropriately with age, so nothing to fret about there.

Harry meanwhile was an enigma. She had managed to lose control with a couple of conjured birds while he had been able to maintain his hold on hundreds. Something like that shouldn't be feasible unless you had pinpoint magical precision and a lot of strength, uncontrollable amounts of raw power. Yet somehow Harry had a grasp on it perfectly despite only having recently discovered the magical world. She had a theory that Harry himself was just pure power in its truest form, no blockages or outside sources that would hinder him in anyway. Even with the spell they were working towards with Professor Flitwick in Charms, while she would be able to levitate the lightest of objects with ease she would only be able to make heavier objects fly with time. Harry meanwhile could probably try to levitate a tree and rip it out of the ground, roots and all.

Theoretically speaking of course, and more likely than not an incredible over exaggeration.

During class, after having perfected her own work, she would watch Harry endlessly as he struggled with first level spells, or at least appeared to have minimal control in order to maintain his cover. That of course begged the question as to the limits of his magical ability, or if he even had a limit to begin with. She couldn't help but feel that it had to do with why he had been targeted as a child, set upon by He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named himself. Most of his targets were set upon by his own men, loyal Death Eaters who would do anything for him. So why had he gone himself?

Hermione felt that she was on the right track but was missing vital information, intel that she likely wouldn't find in the library. It was also something that she doubted Harry was aware about and also might never be privy to the reason. She couldn't particularly believe that some official would one day come up and explain to Harry why he and his parents were attacked that night. Hermione also doubted that this was something that Harry would want to discover on his own.

"You alright Hermione?" asked Harry.

"Hmm, yes, why?" asked Hermione, snapping out of her daze.

"Class is finished," explained Harry. Hermione became somewhat flustered by this revelation as she set about packing up her belongings, Harry lightly chuckling at her antics. "No need to rush, classes are over for the day."

"They are?"

"Yea, I've got training with the Quidditch team so that they can see where best to put me," stated Harry. "Then I think Ron wants a few games of chess tonight to warm him up for the tourney."

"That's tomorrow, isn't it!"

"Yep," said Harry casually as both he and Hermione stood up from their desks and headed towards the exit. "For such a big event, it'd be a shame if Potter Club was to strike."

"Potter Club...do you think they would strike tomorrow?" asked Hermione.

"If they were smart they'd avoid it," said Harry as they entered the hustle and bustle that was the hallway. "The Professors would probably be expecting something and will be on high alert around the school, specifically the area where the tournament is going to be played. Somewhere else however might be completely vulnerable and become a target."

Hermione had to say that she enjoyed this immensely, acting like a secret agent by having the same chat that everybody else in the hallway was having. "So you think they've planned something?"

"Doubt it, everything they do seems to be set seemingly weeks in advance."

"So nothing will happen tomorrow then?"

"Doubt it," said Harry with a shrug of his shoulders.

"I wonder when they'll strike next then," mused Hermione.

"Probably in a couple weeks or so, I imagine that the leader will summon whoever he feels is necessary over the next couple of days so they can plan. If I'm right, I can't help but be a little afraid."

"Honestly, I'm excited."

"You better not laugh if something happens to me."

"Not going to promise anything," said Hermione with a cheeky smile.

"Great, anyways, I've got to go show off my stuff, I'll see you later."

"Sure, see you later Harry," said Hermione as Harry diverted down a different pathway. Hermione couldn't help but feel that there was something akin to a spring in her step as she went over towards the Gryffindor common room. Whether it was from the secrecy that was the conversation or the fact she had just been talking with Harry in general, she couldn't tell. One thing was for sure though.

Harry Potter wasn't just an enigma.

Harry Potter was an enigma wrapped in a riddle hidden in a labyrinth.

And she was determined to figure him out.

...

Susan watched the chess tournament intensely, or more so she watched the people around it. She, like many of the Hufflepuff students, had given it her best shot but was ultimately beaten by those better than her. She knew she wouldn't win but she had entered anyways and now she was supporting her fellow Hufflepuffs and waiting.

She had a feeling something would happen, especially now that it had come to the final four. Susan knew she wasn't the only one waiting in anticipation for both the final and for what the surprise would be. There had to be something, anything set up by the Potter Club, this was too good of an opportunity to pass up. Roughly fifty students plus a fair few professors, they were there and vulnerable.

So why hadn't anything happened yet?

Just because she hadn't been invited to partake in the spectacle that had happened in the great hall (her response to that had been as genuine as they came) possibly meant that Potter Club was still figuring out what to do with her. Her prank had been that much smaller and easier than both the rainbow and the birds, which would have taken incredible amounts of magic. She had basically been given the equipment and told what to do, likewise she assumed that the people who had painted on the Hogwarts walls were doing so as part of an initiation. Painting or putting Muggle novelty items on a chair were nothing in comparison to what had later been shown.

What she wanted to be able to do.

Susan knew that conjuring rainbows or summoning coloured birds wasn't something that was likely taught in the curriculum, or if it was only to a basic degree as opposed to using them how they had. Even though she had grown up surrounded by moving pictures and all kinds of magical devices she had never been so amazed as she had when the birds had exploded over the Great Hall. True wonder which she doubted that anybody in that room had experienced before.

Essentially, that was what she believed Potter club to be, not something which took pleasure in the torment of others for amusement, but rather a group of individuals who understood magic, and that in a world full of spells that the term 'magic' had lost its strength. When magic was normal it no longer seemed magical, or so she thought. She somehow envied the children who had come from the Muggle world and who had walked through that Great Hall alongside her with their jaws agape, and who were impressed by turning matchsticks into needles, astounded when their feet left the ground for the first time on a broomstick and were mesmerized by floating candles.

To her, that was the norm; there was nothing magical about basic magic that she saw on a day to day basis. She wanted to learn magic nobody else knew, something which would impress all those around her, and yet she wanted to do so in secret. To be hidden behind the veil of Potter Club, to astound behind the shadows. It wasn't conventional by any means, but when she heard and even joined in the whispers regarding the events she couldn't help but wish that they were talking about an act that she had done. Nobody seemed to even remember the prank she had pulled on Professor Quirrell and she didn't blame them; her joke was nothing in comparison.

"Hufflepuff advances!"

The declaration shook Susan out of her focus as a round of applause went up as the sixth year defeated the youngest person in the competition. She was actually quite surprised that Ron Weasley had managed to get so far and even secure some house points for Gryffindor.

Blinking several times she watched the crowd once again to see eyes shifting back and forth to one another; if she didn't know better she would guess that everyone was expecting Potter Club to strike at any moment. Somehow she couldn't help but feel that this was the joke, get everyone riled up for nothing. By not doing anything were they pulling the easiest prank of all time?

Surely not.

Surely?

...

Katie Bell watched the windows in anticipation that morning, grinding her teeth against one another whilst waiting for the mail. She, as she assumed many others, had partaken in the vandalism a couple weeks prior with the assistance of Fred Weasley, the only other person she knew that was in Potter Club. During their assignment she had done her best to try and pry any information out of him but he seemed as out of the loop as she was. Heck, he didn't even know whether his brother was part of Potter Club.

During the morning where their blatant disregard of the rules was on display, Fred had jumped up alongside his brother in an act to try and proclaim that he should be selected to join Potter Club. Katie knew that the residential class clown and his brother had a reputation to uphold. It would be actually a lot more noticeable if they hadn't done anything and would have brought a lot of attention upon them.

That day however seemed like ages ago and she wanted more. Sure, Quidditch training had begun, including having to help Harry Potter learn how to fly, as well as classes and assignments, but it still felt like she was lacking something. She had only gotten a taste of what Potter Club could offer and if the aftermath of her attack on school property was anything to go by. She had no idea how it was done but she wanted to do more, and she didn't know how much longer she could wait.

The screeching of owls alerted her of the impending mail delivery and her eyes burned with an intense fire as if trying to possess one of the owls to deliver a letter to her. When a letter did land in front of her however she was unsure of what it was. Katie turned her head side to side as if in confusion before checking the pristinely clean envelope.

She wasted no time by grabbing a butter knife and slicing across the top of the envelope before gripping the contents inside and unfolding it to reveal...a blank piece of paper. Katie blinked thrice before turning the paper over to see if there was anything written on the back, lo and behold there was nothing.

Katie knew though that it was important, possibly vitally so. Thus she pocketed the parchment in the hope that her hunch was true and Potter Club had indeed made contact.

...

"So who do you reckon will solve it first?" asked Harry as he sat beside Hermione in the library. Upon the desk they were working at was a collection of books both critical to their homework and their extracurricular activities. They had blended the two piles together to ensure that anybody who shot a glance their way wouldn't become suspicious of what they were really looking into.

"I reckon Susan might," said Hermione not turning her eyes away from the parchment she was working on. Unlike Harry she was actually focusing on her homework before working with him on whatever it was that he was researching. While the entertainment had it's place she did feel compelled to ensure that her schoolwork was completed only hours after it had been assigned. Only then would she be able to help Harry.

"Susan hey, my money would have been on Cho," said Harry as he looked at the four blank pieces of paper that separated his work bench from Hermione's. Not one of the pieces of parchment had been smudged by ink nor would Harry or Hermione be first in putting a single stroke down.

"Might I inquire into the details regarding what you believe the Potter Club will be conducting?" asked Hermione.

"You don't have to worry about talking about PC in a roundabout way." said Harry. "I chose this corner of the library because I set up both a Silencing Charm around it so nobody will hear us and a charm that will make people uninterested in coming towards this area; can't remember the name for that one but it helps quite a bit."

"That's...awfully convenient..."

"That's magic," said Harry as he rolled his neck from side to side. "So speak casually."

"Alright," said Hermione putting down her quill momentarily. "Having sent out those blank pieces of paper, what are you going to tell Susan, Cho, Katie and Lee?"

"Well, they have the length of an A4 sheet of paper to ask us whatever they wish," answered Harry. "If they fail to ask what is required of them then it is their own fault."

"And...what is required of them?" asked Hermione.

"We need them to learn two spells," said Harry passing over a piece of paper to Hermione.

"I know this first one," said Hermione. "That's for changing the sound of your voice."

"Considering that we'll have to speak with them eventually and nobody technically wants to know who anybody else is, we'll have to disguise ourselves somehow. Our features are easy, heck I'll probably hand out masks or something but our voices will give us away, at least until puberty."

Hermione couldn't help but giggle slightly before she focused on the second spell. "So what does this spell do?"

"That, is essentially the charm used to animate pictures. It's permanently etched into cameras and the like but when something like a portrait is painted, they have to use this spell in order to animate it," answered Harry.

"So we're going to animate a picture then, somehow I think you have something bigger planned than our club emblem," said Hermione returning her attention back to her schoolwork.

"Perhaps," mused Harry before he spotted something out of the corner of his eye. "Well, well, well, time to see who figured it out."

Reacting to Harry's comment, Hermione looked at the paper between them as ink marks began to scrawl across the top of the parchment. Harry couldn't help but chuckle at the first word that he assumed was more of a question than a statement.

 _Hello._

It was plain, simple and in very small writing. "Any guesses on who it is?" asked Harry.

"I'm sticking with Cho," said Hermione.

"Alright then, you can write to her," said Harry picking up the paper and holding it up in front of her.

"It could be a him."

"Seventy five percent chance that it's not Lee, so I'mma stick with her," said Harry waiting for Hermione to take the paper. Hermione looked at the parchment nervously before hesitantly reaching out and grabbing it. Placing it down in front of her, she wondered what she should say. Picking up her quill, Hermione inhaled deeply before dipping the tip into a jar of ink and beginning her reply.

 _Welcome._

"Welcome, really?" said Harry.

"Well it's better than saying hello back, now isn't it," said Hermione trying to justify her word. "See, they're replying back now."

Harry and Hermione sat in silence as they watched the markings appear on the paper stroke by stroke. The pair of them had developed this little piece of magic, having broken down the charms that would allow people to communicate through mirrors to a more simplistic version where they'd converse without the aid of sound and sight. The one main problem with it though was that the conversation couldn't be any longer than the parchment itself and you had no real idea who was on the other end.

 _Is this PC?_

Hermione bit at her lip as she questioned how to respond. By all means it was who the person believed it was but for all they knew the person she was writing to could be surrounded by friends and the whole thing could be blown out of proportion without them knowing.

 _Are you alone?_

"Nice," said Harry. "Secrecy is key."

"Hush you," said Hermione as she watched the ink write out in front of her.

 _I'm by myself in the library._

Harry couldn't help but laugh as he pushed himself up from his chair. "Where are you going?" asked Hermione in a demanding tone.

"I need to research a couple things, I'll be back shortly," said Harry walking off before Hermione could yell at him to come back. Not like she would raise her voice anyways, they were in the library after all. Instead she focused on the parchment in front of her knowing that they were waiting for a response.

 _In that case, I am pleased to inform you that this is indeed Potter Club and thus when we are done you will have to destroy this in order to keep your identity hidden._

Several seconds passed by before the response came.

 _I understand. I don't like it, but I understand._

Hermione breathed out a sigh of relief at that, not knowing how the person would respond to her comment. The conversation began to speed up and Hermione felt as if she was writing to a penpal whom she'd never met. Eventually she gave out the necessary information as she closed towards the end of the paper, informing them once more that they had to destroy the evidence after copying the spells somewhere safe. She also signed at the bottom of the paper with the club initials before setting fire to her own sheet right as Harry came back.

"So I take it it went well," said Harry.

"Everything was mentioned," acknowledged Hermione. "You find out who it was?"

"Nope, went to the bathroom instead," said Harry only just being able to react in time to catch the book Hermione threw at him. "Now that wasn't very nice."

"You're disgusting, you know that," said Hermione unable to wipe the smirk from her face.

"I'll take that as a compliment."

...

"Mister Potter, may I ask that you stay behind for a moment," declared Snape from the front of the class. Harry looked up from his bench where he had been packing up his belongings before tossing a sideways glance towards Hermione who merely shrugged her shoulders. Harry responded with a shrug in kind before sitting back down whilst waiting for everybody else to file out of the dungeon. When the only two people remaining were Harry and Snape, the professor stepped out from behind his bench and walked forward, every stride carrying purpose. Harry had originally been intimidated by Severus his first time around but considering he knew exactly what Snape was to Dumbledore he couldn't rightfully be scared of him.

Standing in front of the seated Harry, cold eyes glared down at the boy in front of him. "Mister Potter, do you have any idea why I might have asked you to stay behind?" asked Professor Snape.

"Maybe something to do with my schoolwork?" said Harry, completely unsure why he was still in class.

"I take great pride in my work Mister Potter and I also take great pride watching people succeed in this field. The number of people likely to succeed in my class are minimal and I would have it so; I don't wish to waste time with those lacking in skill however for the first five years of study I must put up with those incapable of brewing the simplest of draughts," declared Snape. "Might I see your cauldron."

It wasn't a request.

Harry reached beneath his desk and pulled out the item in question and placed it on his desk. Snape leaned over it before sticking his hand in and running a finger across the inside. A couple seconds passed before he pulled out his hand and inspected his fingertip. More time passed before he showed his finger to Harry. "What do you see mister Potter?"

"Your hand sir?" said Harry unsure of his answer.

"How very observant," said Snape sarcastically, or at least something reminiscent of sarcasm. "I was referring to the lack of grime or any other substance that has gone into your cauldron to this point."

"I clean it after every potion," stated Harry.

"I can tell that you clean it by hand as well," declared Snape. "Those who try to use magic to clean their cauldron often find their potions tainted." Harry was genuinely surprised by that but remained silent as Snape continued. "As of the moment there are only a few of your peers capable of producing potions of an adequate quality. I hope that I don't have to keep you behind once more to ridicule you on how poor your standard has become."

"I'll try not to disappoint," said Harry.

"We will see," said Snape before turning his back on Harry and walking towards his office. Figuring he had been dismissed, Harry headed off, contemplating the conversation he had just had. It certainly hadn't happened first time round and he pondered whether Snape had actually ever told him something akin to a compliment. It seemed that he struggled with giving them considering how much of a roundabout way he had gone about it.

He wasn't surprised when he was ambushed by Hermione who had been waiting for him just outside the dungeon. "Is everything alright?" she asked.

"Yea, just congratulating me on doing something right," said Harry as the two of them started walking down the corridor. "Trust me, wasn't what I was expecting."

"You make it sound like he expected you to fail," said Hermione as they rounded a corner, a chilly Autumn breeze sending shivers down their spines as they found themselves exposed to the elements.

"Wouldn't surprise me if he wanted me to," said Harry. "He did give me an idea for something later on but it'll have to wait a while, he isn't so blind as to not connect the dots."

"Do tell."

"Nope, I'm holding on to this one for later," said Harry cheekily. "On that note how are the spells going?"

Coming to an abrupt stop, Hermione started rummaging through her belongings before pulling out a piece of parchment and unrolling it to reveal a stick figure strolling across the page. "Stick people?" said Harry skeptically.

"I'm not an artist, okay," said Hermione as the figure seemed to take notice of the two humans and started waving.

"You could've at least given him a face," said Harry. As if responding to Harry's comment, the stickman slapped at it's face as if searching for eyes and a mouth. When it could find none however it started to panic, scrambling along the bottom of the page as if a face was something that it had dropped. "Do you think he knows what a face is or if he even needs one?"

Hermione, having had enough for the moment and put the paperwork back into her bag, removing the stickman from view. "I think we can debate the needs and necessities of an inanimate object another time," she declared.

"Looked pretty animate to me."

"Look, I didn't give him a face because...well...I don't know how," said Hermione as she turned her attention to the floor. Thankfully, her confidence grew once more when she felt a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

"You got any pencils from home?" asked Harry. "I'd rather not use all my ink trying to teach you how to draw an eye."

Hermione merely smiled as the two of them started walking down the corridor once more, apparently to practise art provided they didn't think of a better way to spend their time on the way.

...

Susan couldn't help but smile at the bird on her parchment cleaning its feathers in front of her. She had been having trouble with the spell she had discovered for weeks, having only been able to practice it in private and only when she had finished her assignments. While the spells she learned for Potter Club were more important in her eyes she still had to focus on her homework. Last thing she needed was to fall behind in Charms or Transfiguration.

Susan was proud more than anything, knowing full well that the spell was advanced magic and she was capable of performing it. She couldn't help but giggle as the bird in her picture took flight and zoomed off into the background, circling a handful of times before landing down further away from where it had originally begun. Biting at the inside of her lip she cast the spell once more to freeze the picture.

Rummaging through her belongings she grasped hold of her quill and a bottle of ink. Considering the rain outside it wasn't like she could do much at the moment anyway other than study or draw, and since her homework was up to date it seemed as good a time as any to work on her artistic creation.

As she began constructing a birdhouse she recalled her first few attempts at casting the spell. The failed attempts were entertaining in their own right where only a single piece of her creation would come to life or different parts would go at different speeds. It was odd to say the least.

Having grown up with her aunt who spent a vast amount of time at work, Susan had spent a great deal of time at home by herself. When she was five her aunt had gotten her some colouring books and from there she got books teaching her how to draw in three dimensions and so on so on. As a child she had often dreamed about becoming an artist but that was put on hold when she got her letter to Hogwarts, and suddenly her head was filled with another world of wonders.

Now though she was mixing what she loved with her future aspirations.

As she recast the spell on her paper she watched as the bird she had created flew around in confusion momentarily before noticing the birdhouse that had been custom built for him and headed in for a closer look. Susan giggled as the bird entered it's new home and started making himself cosy. With a smile on her face she knew that she'd draw a partner for him in the near future, but that was for another time.

Freezing the image once more she hid the paper beneath her bed in her trunk before heading down to the Hufflepuff common room. As expected with Hallowe'en quickly approaching a few of the older students had taken it upon themselves to start trying to terrify the first years with horrendous stories. Horrendous in both the terrifying and the terrible sense.

Still, it was entertainment and Susan couldn't help but wonder whether or not Potter Club would be using it's new weapons on the supposed scariest day of the year. If anything she could draw a cave full of bats, stick it to the front of the great hall and animate it. At least people would be able to see her work in action then.

Well, until she did as she was told.

For now, she would wait.

...

Harry stared at the ceiling knowing full well what would be happening tomorrow. As soon as midnight struck it would be the thirty first of October and the beginning of the real problems first year had dished out. Quirrell would come screaming down the hall during dinner, the troll having been unleashed into the dungeons. Harry briefly chuckled contemplating that during the pandemonium he stepped on the back of Quirrell's head just to injure Voldemort. Arguably he could go one step further and use the love that his mother had protected him with and kill Quirrell then, it was something to think about.

He highly doubted that Hermione would be upset with Ron's words as Hermione actually had quite a number of friends as opposed to last time. He knew that it was in her nature to correct Ron during their first lesson levitating feathers, nothing was going to change that. More likely than not though she would not be running off to the bathroom and becoming a potential target. Thus it made sense that the three of them would not be confronting the troll this time round.

Harry did fear however that Potter Club would be blamed, it only made sense to target the group that hadn't done anything nefarious as of late. The professors likely wouldn't announce it but rumours would spread and before he knew it anything related to the club would be torn to shreds. He had to be prepared to counter that somehow.

Pushing himself into a sitting position, Harry rubbed at his eyes as he contemplated his options. No matter what path he chose though he knew there were going to be repercussions.

Potter Club would not come out of this unscathed.


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

...

"TROLL! Troll in the dungeon!" screamed Quirrell as he sprinted through the Great Hall, drawing the feast to an impromptu end. The odd, sudden absence of his stutter was quite amusing.. "Thought you ought to know," concluded Quirrell as he collapsed in a heap on the ground.

Harry lifted up his hands to cover his ears just before the commotion began, many of the students having been struck by panic as they started scrambling from their seats in desperation. Harry's eyes meanwhile caught the glares of both Weasley twins, the older boys suspecting something. He just merely shrugged his shoulders in response which seemed to be as good a way of communicating as any before Dumbledore bellowed for silence before giving clear instructions.

Harry only half paid attention as he looked over his shoulder at where Quirrell lay prone. Thinking back on it, it made no sense for the terrible excuse for a teacher to have even charged up here. If you qualified enough to teach children to defend themselves then surely you'd be strong and or clever enough to take on a full grown troll. Even if you couldn't kill it they were by no means the brightest creatures in the world.

Harry had to fight off the urge to track down the troll to see just what he could do against the creature.

A tugging on his sleeve brought him back to reality. Looking at who had a hold of him found Hermione looking at him with an inquisitive glare. Thankfully she couldn't openly state what she was thinking, even amongst the chaos as they began to get shuffled away from the hall.

Considering he knew where the troll would be he had little worry about running into it. While everyone else was panicking and looking down every corridor in case it was coming for them, Harry knew full well that around now it would be marching into the girl's bathroom where Hermione wouldn't be located.

Or so he had thought.

Having been moving without thinking he couldn't help but barge into the person in front of him before noticing the fact that everyone had come to a standstill. Hermione's grip found it's way to Harry's robe and suddenly the boy felt a long way out of his comfort zone as he found the entire Gryffindor house staring directly at a mountain troll, the huge club dangling in it's grip as it looked at the children before it as if contemplating what it should do.

"Everyone, behind me," declared Percy. "Fourth years and higher, stunning spell on my mark."

Harry watched as Percy did his best to take control of the situation. For once he was actually watching the house of the brave act accordingly as they lined up and pulled out their wands. Unsurprisingly Fred and George hadn't paid attention to their older brother's warning of only fourth years and above and they took positions on either side of him. Percy didn't reprimand them at the moment but Harry was certain that the older brother would scould them at a later date.

"Now!"

"STUPEFY!" shouted the Gryffindor's in chorus as the corridor shone a vibrant red as all the spells landed directly on target. Trolls naturally were magically resistant but surely the amount of firepower that it had been struck by was more than enough to put it down.

Or so they thought.

As the students started backing away slowly, the older students still with their wands out, one first year witch took it upon herself to disarm the troll. "Bombarda!" Hermione shouted as she pointed her wand at the toll's hand. While the effect should have been grander the desired result was made as the handle of the club exploded, several fragments of the weapon lodging itself in the troll's hand.

The troll screamed in agony momentarily before it suddenly became very angry. It roared before charging forward, making huge strides towards the students only to come completely undone as magical rope snagged around it's legs and tightened, the feet of the troll falling out from underneath it as it crashed to the ground.

"Restrain it, now!" shouted Harry with his wand held out, his spell having done what was needed. A roar from the troll brought everybody back to the point at hand as they did as instructed.

It would be several minutes before the professors rounded the corner to discover the troll surrounded by the Gryffindor students who were standing around idly chatting and giving each other high fives and other forms of praise. "Explain!" demanded Professor McGonagall of her students, unable to say anything else at the moment.

"You want to explain this, Harry?" asked Percy Weasley, looking atop the bound troll where the eleven year old boy sat upon his trophy.

"Sure, where do we start?"

...

Harry sat outdoors deep in thought, doing his best to replicate 'The Thinker' statue. A dozen ideas were currently rushing through his head as he contemplated the foreseeable future. Thanks to their efforts the previous night, Percy, Hermione and himself had managed to secure fifty points for Gryffindor and were the toast of the common room for much of the night.

Harry himself had been contemplating his spell work and how he had successfully caught the troll with a wordless spell. He hadn't really put much thought into it but even he knew that he was stronger than he should have been.

Much stronger.

Even when summoning the birds a few weeks prior he had only intended to create as many as his strength would allow but no matter how many he made he never felt a strain on his magical core. Taking a moment to rub at his scar he reminded himself that he had once been a Horcrux, an accidental one but one nonetheless. He had contemplated the possibility that he was no longer one, that by having had Voldemort attempt to kill him to rid him of the Horcrux had in fact been the cause to send him back. Each of the Horcruxes they had tracked down and destroyed had had some manner of protection over them, something to give Voldemort the edge.

Considering he was an accidental Horcrux, it stood to reason that there was an accidental protection placed upon him as well, namely by being sent back in time every other Horcrux was alive once more. Which of course meant he had to destroy them all again.

He tried to deduce why his strength was so much greater however and couldn't put his finger on it. If he had been a Horcrux in the original period and now was no longer one, had the part of Voldemort's soul been blocking some of his strength? He knew that Voldemort had come after him because of the prophecy predicting that he would have the power to vanquish the Dark Lord. Did he have that ridiculous amount of strength from birth and only because he became a Horcrux was the power he could access limited?

He doubted whether he'd ever get the answers he was after.

A heavy sigh escaped his lips as he moved his head upwards, or at least attempted to only to find that he was unable. Desperation kicked in when he tried to move his limbs but found them frozen in place, even his eyelids refused to blink. He'd been petrified while stuck in his thoughts and he had no idea who had done it.

Three people swiftly came into view, each of them wearing identical plain white masks to cover their faces. Unfortunately their plan to keep their identity secret went straight out the window when he saw their hair; two identical sets of red and one bushy head of brown hair. ' _Good try guys,'_ thought Harry as Hermione pulled out a large piece of parchment and unrolled it to reveal Harry's short term destiny.

 _Potter Club Presents Potter Art_

 _'Title could have been better,'_ thought Harry as Hermione and the twins set about their work, transfiguring tree branches into easels and scraps of parchment into canvases. They worked relatively quickly as well and Harry suspected that they were running quite short on time, provided they didn't want to get caught.

In less than a minute they were finished and ran off, giving a quick wave of what Harry assumed was an apology. He had to give them credit, they had planned it all without his previous knowledge (hopefully discreetly) and he could only imagine how embarrassed anybody else would be with the situation. Embarrassment he would later have to feign but still.

It was then that he heard why his fellow pranksters had been so swift and while he couldn't hear the words at the moment the voices were quite elegant. The voices drew closer and closer until Harry found himself looking at women from Hufflepuff and if the Prefect badge was anything to go by they were in their fifth year.

Harry watched as they started discussing with one another what they should do and while Harry was grateful that a couple of them believed that they should undo the curse immediately it would defeat the purpose. For a full minute he watched as they debated what to do and Harry could see one of them raise their wand at him, and for a second he feared that she would undo the spell. He was surprised however that the only thing which changed was his tie fall off and the top two buttons of his shirt came undone.

Quickly the scolding began from the Prefect but it had minimal effect as a couple of the girls put down their belongings, apologizing profusely before they began working, transfiguring their quills into thin paintbrushes and inkpots into paint. Harry would have smiled if he could, sure he didn't like being the centre of attention but from his view he was getting to watch some beautiful girls study him and replicate their view onto paper.

Not the worst way to spend a Friday afternoon.

In the end the Prefect gave up before apologizing to Harry and joining her friends in creating what Harry hoped would be an accurate portrayal. He could do nothing but watch and listen as the girls before him laughed, compared pictures and went about their business. He had no idea of how much time had passed before they looked at each other's work once more before they all nodded to each other and picked up their canvas.

"Alright, firstly we're sorry about leaving you like this and we're sorry we didn't free you sooner, so we hope you forgive us," said the Prefect as she undid the Petrification spell. The elder girls waited for Harry to shout something aggressive, verbally abuse them for being used in such a way but the moment never came as he cracked his neck from side to side and stretched his arms towards the sun.

"All good," he finally said. "I mean at the end of the day nobody was hurt and I think that was the point."

"Point?" repeated one of the girls.

"I've been noticing lately that magic is primarily used to function from day to day, it's so common that people forget that magic is meant to be the opposite of the mundane," said Harry looking towards the sky. "Mundane magic, while it has it's place just feels...off...you get what I'm saying."

The girl's looked amongst one another for a moment before the Prefect walked up to Harry and placed a hand on his shoulder. "If you wouldn't mind, I'd love to hear more about your views on the world, Harry, if you'll give us the time of course."

Harry, being the perfect gentleman that he was, accepted.

Like all boys would.

...

"Welcome, thank you for coming on such short notice and for those of you who have yet to be personally welcomed, we are Potter Club."

"That's all good and all but who are you?"

"I believe that would defeat the purpose of having used voice altering charms and covering our appearances with masks and hoods."

Fair point."

"Now, I assume that you all are capable of casting the spell we sent you and as such we request that you follow us down to the Quidditch pitch."

"Won't Filch catch us?"

"Let's see, Filch is currently patrolling the fourth floor so I doubt he'll find us anytime soon."

"How do you know that?"

"Magic."

"Smooth..."

"Can I ask a question?"

"By all means, go ahead."

"Is this all of Potter Club?"

"Yep."

"Were you expecting more?"

"Well, kinda. I mean the amount of magic that it would have taken to summon all those birds should have worn out a dozen people but since I didn't take part the seven of you must be incredibly strong."

"Actually, I didn't take part in that one."

"Neither did I."

"Wait, I didn't either so does that mean that the four of you did it by yourselves?"

"Actually the entire thing was orchestrated by our illustrious leader."

"Didn't even let us know what he was doing, had us all fooled."

"Wait, you did it...by yourself...just how strong are you?"

"No idea, haven't been bothered to push myself further."

"That's crazy."

"Alright, since we got a bit of time on our hands, who was the one who pranked Professor Quirrell?"

"I..I did."

"For an initiation, it went as well as we could have hoped."

"Alright then, who did the rainbow over Slytherin table?"

"That was actually a combined effort, they and I did the research and when the time came those two were able to keep Filch busy while I did all the hard work."

"You do know I would have liked to help out there as well."

"Technically you weren't part of Potter Club then, I was getting you to help me without your knowledge."

"I know."

"So you used her?"

"Not really, I lost a bet beforehand and he didn't abuse the authority he was given."

"So our leader's a 'he' you say."

"Well there was a fifty fifty shot."

"You guys really couldn't tell?"

"Well considering your strength I wouldn't have been surprised if you'd changed your voice to mimic a guy's as opposed to just being a guy."

"That may be a touch out of my league."

"Doubt it."

"Alright, another question, who stunned Harry Potter and set up the impromptu art class?"

"You three hey?"

"Good bit of fun that."

"Had no idea what was going on."

"Do you know what happened afterwards, once Harry was unfrozen?"

"No."

"I'm not one for gossip."

"Well, word around the common room was that Harry was found by a few of the fifth year girls including a Prefect, who after enjoying what was before them invited Harry to the Prefect baths."

"You're kidding me right."

"No way."

"So in the end we helped a kid become a man?"

"I don't know for certain what happened but something did and gossip is spreading like wildfire."

"I wonder if Harry would ever forgive us if he were to learn of our identities."

"Oh whatever shall we do if he were to find out."

"I imagine he'd say leave it be and focus on the fact that we've reached our destination."

"What are we doing here?"

"I know the first game's on tomorrow, we're not going to sabotage it are we?"

"No, but we're going to make all the games a lot more interesting from now on."

...

Katie Bell was ecstatic that she had been selected for the Gryffindor Quidditch team, although the yawn she did her best to cover up would say otherwise. "Katie, I told you to go to bed early last night," declared Wood. "Any more late night shenanigans before a game will cost you your place on the team."

Katie knew that Oliver's words were mostly hot air, she had been the only person who had tried out even capable of riding a broom at the pace Wood demanded and as such her place on the team was secure for the year. Hopefully though her obligations to the Quidditch team wouldn't clash with her time with Potter Club, she had thoroughly enjoyed herself last night. The excitement of being up after curfew mixed with the fear of being caught had been adrenaline pumping.

Honestly she wondered if the game she was about to take part in would excite her to the same degree.

As she put on her arm guards she glanced around at the rest of her teammates, from Wood fretting about nervously to Harry calmly polishing the Nimbus 2000 that had landed on top of his breakfast that morning. Finally her eyes fell upon the Weasley twins, knowing full well that one of them had partaken in the night's activities with her. While she couldn't tell which was which she was more than aware that Fred Weasley was one of the members of Potter Club and had accompanied her back to the common room safely the previous night.

The boy lacked any bags under his eyes meaning he had had little trouble falling asleep but considering how notorious the twins were she doubted that Fred was worried about getting in trouble. She imagined though that the witchcraft they had performed was far greater than the small pranks the boys had gotten into trouble with in the past. Well, small in comparison.

"C'mon Katie, focus!" shouted Wood before starting to spur up the rest of the team. Katie meanwhile chuckled wondering just how focused their Captain would be once he saw what had happened to the stadium.

...

Susan had to hide her admiration of the previous night's handiwork, instead having to gasp in shock at the blatant disrespect to school property. That being said their masterpiece was quite joyful to behold as the lion they had animated walked back and forth amongst its barriers, the club having been quite certain that the ferocious animal couldn't make it's way to the side where the other house mascots were. Even though she couldn't see it, Susan assumed the badger they had animated beneath them would be snarling at the snake located beneath the Slytherin cheer squad. The huge serpent was hissing viciously back and forth as if beckoning both the badger and lion to battle it.

On the other side of the stadium however the raven however just seemed to be cleaning itself, having already figured out that there was no danger to be had.

The eight students had spent a good chunk of time the previous night both drawing and animating the creatures as perfect as they could with the time they had. Sure the colours didn't flow right when the animals moved but none of them had actually practiced the spell with coloured images from her knowledge. Also the lion's limbs didn't quite move as they had anticipated but all around they were proud of the work they had accomplished.

"Who do you reckon did this?" asked Hannah Abbott, Susan's fellow first year Hufflepuff. The two of them were the only first year girl's in their house, the Sorting ceremony having been a bit gender biased by having only those two to work alongside seven boys.

"I can think of someone," said Susan slyly as she smiled, leaning her arms on the protective railing. She completely missed the next thing Hannah said before the Quidditch players started making their way onto the pitch, the Slytherin players leaning away from the Gryffindor stands as the lion roared at them. Lost in her own thoughts, she drowned out the rest of the world as she focused solely on the lion opposite their stand.

This was what magic was about.

...

Harry lazily soared over the Quidditch pitch, his eyes scanning the field for the elusive Golden Snitch. He was also holding onto his new broom with a vice like grip knowing full well that in the original timeline before he had a chance to win the game he would nearly be bucked off the Nimbus 2000. It seemed like a pointless way to try and kill someone, I mean the vast number of professors in the vicinity assured that even if he were to fall there was little chance that he would go splat.

Harry veered to the left and avoided the bludger that had threatened to smash into his ribs, watching with satisfaction as the iron sphere of destruction began chasing one of the Slytherin chasers. Somehow with the knowledge that in order for time to go as it should then he would have to be thrown off his broom before he had a chance of catching the elusive golden ball. Or if memory served him right, he only caught it by nearly swallowing the damned thing. How he hadn't choked to death was still a miracle in and of itself.

Watching as Katie Bell scored past the Slytherin Keeper put a smile as his face as the animated snake on the wall hissed violently. It had actually been Fred's idea the previous night to add noises to the animals, and there had been a brief discussion between all of them as they worked about setting the project up and how only the House animals in play would react at certain times. Arguably it had made their little pet project take an extra half an hour applying the correct charms and they didn't really have a chance to test it. Harry wouldn't be surprised if the animals in question would be able to become silent once they had been given voice which he'd have to try and find a way to rectify down the track.

He did find it amusing however as the snake continued hissing and while nobody else in the pitch could determine what the snake was saying Harry understood it perfectly. 'Yes you fool, swiftly now, claim the golden egg!'

"Golden egg?" repeated Harry.

"SLYTHERIN WINS!"

"...Shit."

...

"I guess the pressure just got to me?" said Harry apologetically with a shrug of his shoulders. The verbal lashing Oliver had given him for simply remaining aloof during the game had been vicious and Harry didn't blame him. He had been so focused on keeping a grip when his broom went haywire but the moment never came. Thinking about it, Harry knew that it was unlikely that Voldemort would get Quirrell to try the same thing twice. Once could be seen as an accident, two however would raise suspicions. Unfortunately it made sense.

Harry paid little attention as his captain complained once more before heading towards the showers. Harry meanwhile was contemplating whether or not in the first instance Quirrell hadn't accidentally targeted Hermione but had purposefully done so. If he had lost his friend, Harry would have undoubtedly snapped and while he may not have been killed he would have become weak and as a result made himself an easy target down the road.

Again, this was all theoretically speaking, there was no way to really divulge the true intentions until he confronted Quirrell towards the end of the school year. Provided he could stop himself from just killing the man straight up.

"Are you alright Harry?" asked Angelina as she took a seat next to the youngest student in the room.

"What? Oh yea, I'm fine," said Harry quickly.

"Don't let Wood get you down," said Angelina. "When his predecessor named him Captain he locked himself up in his room for three days or so they say, determined to work on strategies and to come to grips with the responsibility thrown at him. He changed that day and his studies have struggled as a result of. I think that he's forgotten that Quidditch isn't just about winning..."

"It's about having fun," concluded Harry.

"Exactly, perhaps having someone so young on the team will help remind him one day," said Angelina patting Harry's shoulder a couple times before standing off and heading towards the showers.

"Well then, this'll be a challenge," said Harry softly as his eyes fixed on Katie. He figured it was time that the older girl gave her best shot at a solo mission.

...

"So Harry, do you have much planned for the Christmas Holidays?" asked Hermione from the dinner table, her question practically drowned out by the noise of everyone else around them. With it being so late in November it wasn't surprising that a good deal of conversation topics were centred around the Yule event.

"Not much, probably scour the library for all kinds of useless bits of information," said Harry with a cheeky smile.

Hermione mimicked his smile momentarily before her glance changed upwards slightly, causing Harry to look over his shoulder at where Susan Bones stood. "Hey Harry," she said in a tone that lacked confidence, something unbecoming of the Hufflepuff student. Harry glanced at her inquisitively having unexpected this moment. "Could, you come with me for a moment?"

Harry looked to Hermione for guidance and the brown haired witch was only able to come up with a supportive shrug of the shoulders. "Thanks," he said dryly before turning his attention back to Susan. "Yea sure."

Getting to his feet, Harry was taken aback as he suddenly found his fingers wrapped in a warm embrace. Susan's grip was ever so gentle yet absolute at the same time as she dragged Harry away from peering eyes, doing her best not to pay attention to the vast amount of eyes glaring at the pair.

Harry said nothing as he watched people turn to one another and start speaking in hushed whispers. It didn't take a genius to figure out what they were talking about and he felt as if something monumental needed to happen over the Christmas Holidays in order to stop the rumor mill from spinning too quickly.

He'd definitely need the twins' help for that one.

After what seemed a small eternity, the two first year students were free of prying eyes in the safety of the corridor. Harry half wanted to make a joke but didn't want to destroy whatever confidence Susan had left. "So..."

"Harry, I was wondering, I mean if you want to of course, it's not like I'm forcing you..."

"Susan," said Harry stopping the girl dead in her tracks. "Calm down for a moment, take a deep breath and then ask away."

"...Would you like to spend Christmas with me?"

Harry's mind shut down at that point, overheating from trying desperately to figure out the pros and cons of going and spending the time with Susan and her family. Before he could restart his central thinking however he found himself victim to what he only knew as 'Puppy dog eyes.'

And just like that, all plans he had had for Christmas were shattered.


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

 **...**

Harry looked out at the grounds of Hogwarts, blanketed white, the ever magical scenery having become more even spectacular. From Gryffindor Tower he peeked skywards, unable to see a single hint of blue sky.

Tearing his eyes away, Harry instead focused on the half packed trunk lying at the foot of his bed. In a true showing of male intelligence he had left the packing until the last minute, knowing full well that the train would be departing in only a handful of hours. Honestly though, he had no idea what to pack for such a journey other than what he deemed to be an acceptable amount of underwear and socks. Accompanying his undergarments thus far were a couple of jumpers and long pants along with a handful of t-shirts. Outside of garments he had packed the appropriate reading material that he would need to quote in order to complete the homework that had been assigned.

Of course he was only bringing these along in order to not simply complete his assignments without requiring any reading material. Arguably he could do without the extra weight but he couldn't risk being discovered. Knowing that he would only be going for a short while he had instructed Hedwig to stay behind and try not to get too feisty with the other owls. Needless to say this had resulted in him getting bitten on the ear; thankfully it was no more than a nibble.

Rolling his shoulders, Harry figured that he had packed enough for the brief journey and if he required anything else he would purchase it along the way. Clasping the locks shut, Harry made his way down to the common room only to pause momentarily as he caught eyes with the Weasley twins, who only nodded towards him. Earlier in the week Harry had given them letters. They contained instructions for the other members of Potter Club to be sent on different days in order to make sure nothing was seen as conspicuous. Essentially he was just asking for the students to do a touch more homework before the next semester commenced.

Nothing notorious at all.

Reaching the common room, Harry found the circular area highly populated as those staying and those going were saying farewell to one another and wishing safe travels. Laughter was in the air along with a handful of promises to send presents to one another. This of course brought Harry's attention to the question about whether Professor Dumbledore would send his father's Invisibility Cloak to where he would be staying or if it would be waiting for him when he returned. Alternatively, he could not receive it until a later date which would throw his plans way out of proportion.

Unfortunately it didn't seem as if there was much that he could do in such an occasion.

"How's it going, Neville?" asked Harry as he patted the shy boy on the shoulder.

"Alright, Harry," he said without the usual stammer that came with most of his conversations. "I didn't know you were going somewhere for Christmas."

"Kind of got an out of the blue invite," said Harry. "Trust me, I did not expect anything to happen before the end of the year other than relaxing in the Great Hall and doing some studying."

"Anything seems better than that," said Neville with a bit of a chuckle.

"Well what are your plans?" asked Harry.

"My gran's hosting a Christmas Ball this year so it'll be a pretty big event; I'll probably just shy away in the corner somewhere. Most of their conversations just go over my head," said Neville seemingly retreating into himself somewhat.

Harry pondered on what he had just been informed and wondered if there was anything he could do to help. "You're relative's a pretty important person isn't she?" said Harry, garnering a weak nod in response. "Why not try and rub shoulders with some of the big wigs then, one day her contacts are going to become your contacts. No reason in waiting around for them to approach you when you can just go straight to them."

Harry walked away, leaving Neville to ponder on what he'd just said. Whether or not the seeds he had planted in Neville's mind would bloom straight away was debatable but Harry knew just what Neville was capable of. He would gain strength over time, he still recalled when he was first able to disarm his opponent in Dumbledore's Army (which hopefully wouldn't have to be formed again this time around) and how much his confidence had grown when he had been applauded for succeeding. Giving him a little push in the right direction now should be a good start.

The idea of Dumbledore's Army made him contemplate what would happen from fifth year onwards. If everything went according to plan then Voldemort wouldn't return at the end of the Tri-Wizard Cup. This would result in the Ministry not trying to undermine Dumbledore by planting their own pathetic excuse of a teacher into the school.

Effectively everything from the end of fourth year onwards would be a blank sheet where all of his prior knowledge would be almost useless. At the end of the day however he would have to track down and destroy the Horcruxes, and as daunting as it sounded he may not be quick enough to prevent Voldemort from rising again. Forming the group again was a plausible idea, but how to go about it in a legitimate sense was something to ponder over. Proclaiming that one of the darkest lords in history was going to return one day and they needed to get ready would have him locked up in the psychiatric ward of St. Mungo's.

He'd need to wait before acting on that.

"C'mon Harry, we need to head down to the train station," said Hermione joyfully with her belongings dragging behind her. Harry couldn't help but ponder as to why Hermione was so prompt, from his reckoning the train didn't depart for at least another hour. Plenty of time to get to the station.

"What's the rush?" asked Harry.

"Well we wouldn't want to be running late and not be able to get a carriage," said Hermione. Immediately Harry could tell that something was up. The train was plenty big enough to cater for the entire school and since there were many people staying behind then there would be more than a handful of empty carriages.

Hermione was playing a game and Harry couldn't help but want to win.

"If you say so, just give me a minute to get my things," said Harry as he made his way up to the room he shared with the rest of the first year boys. A chirp resonated from Hedwig, the magnificent owl standing upon Harry's belongings. "How's it going, girl?" asked Harry as he scratched Hedwig under the beak, slightly ruffling her feathers. "I won't be gone for long alright, promise me that you won't eat Ron's rat while I'm gone, okay, I kind of need him in a couple years time."

A screech was the best answer Harry could hope for before Hedwig took flight, swooping out of the window in search of what Harry hoped was food. Although Hedwig was only ever really seen delivering or sending letters, other than that Harry had no real idea what the snowy white owl did in her spare time. Maybe she had been a mother.

Shaking his head, Harry tried not to focus on what was to potentially come as he grabbed the belongings for his trip. He had tried to base his packing on what he believed would be necessary for the journey, but as far as he could remember he had always taken everything or nothing when going on a trip. For a two week trip he figured that he would need no more than a few shirts but since he was unsure he had packed seven, just to be safe.

He really needed to take shorter holidays more often.

Picking up his trunk, Harry placed it on the bed and checked the contents once more to ensure that he had more than everything he needed. Locking the clasps, he contemplated reducing the size of his trunk but knew that it would cause too many questions once he walked through the corridor. Also he never had had much luck with the charm, so he wisely decided to bite the bullet and haul it the normal way.

"Let us help, Harry," said the twins, startling the young boy as they seemingly appeared in the doorway.

"Really, guys?" said Harry in mock anger. "I know you're not just here to help me out, so nominate one of yourselves to answer and let's get this over with."

Both Fred and George looked at each other before raising the fists to one another. "Rock, Paper, Scissors!" they said in unison, both of them ending the call with their hands showing 'scissors.' This wasn't the first time that Harry had gotten the twins to settle things between them with this method; the alternative was flipping a coin but that just seemed a tad too boring after a while. Harry also knew that their mindset was remarkably similar and as such it would take several attempts before one of them came up with a ploy at a different time to their brother. Whether such ploy would bring victory was never guaranteed.

After four consecutive draws one of the twins finally came out on top, the loser snapping his fingers as he sunk into the background. "Alright," said the victor as they closed the gap. "Harry, we're just here to give you a heads up on what our plan for the break is now that we're staying." Harry nodded, recalling Ron informing him that his parents were going to Romania. He always wondered how they'd been able to afford the trip but never inquired into it. "While we will do as you have asked there is also something that we need to do ourselves, something outside of your banner."

"Will the results counteract some of the work we have put in?" asked Harry crossing his arms.

"Doubtful, we're just going to make Christmas that extra bit festive with some fireworks and the like, Weasley branded of course," they said.

"Have you guys tested these out yet?"

"Nope, but that's half the fun now isn't it?" they said with a cheeky smirk on their face. "If they're as successful as we hope however we don't think we'd be able to use them for Potter Club activities; too many people will watch the test run and people aren't nearly as stupid as some would hope."

"Well don't do too much damage, I'd rather the Great Hall remain in one piece," said Harry. "After all, when all is said and done that is going to be where our finale is held."

"Finale?"

Harry just smiled.

...

Harry and Hermione trudged through the snow amongst their fellow schoolchildren, Harry having taken Hermione on several detours much to her annoyment. He did have to admit though that pissing in every male bathroom the school possessed in half an hour was impressive, even if Hermione failed to see it as any form of an accomplishment.

Had he had more time he probably would have gunned for all the female toilets as well.

"Because of your stupid game, we're late," declared Hermione as they stepped aboard the station next to the snow covered train. Despite the lumps of snow aboard the carriages the locomotive looked as impressive as ever.

"And what are we late for?" asked Harry as they hauled their trunks into the luggage compartment.

Hermione didn't answer.

Harry found Hermione grab his hand before she dragged him up into the Hogwarts Express, quickly finding a secluded compartment and making themselves at home. "So," said Harry as he closed the door, "I assume there's a reason as to why you wanted me here so early, I can't imagine why we'd be running 'late' otherwise."

Hermione sat down before Harry took the seat opposite her. Hermione took several moments to compose herself, taking several deep breaths preparing herself for this conversation. Before she got the chance however the door to the compartment slid open, shattering the moment that Hermione had been building towards.

"Hey Hermione, Harry, do you mind if I sit in here with you?" asked Susan Bones.

Neither of them could construct a reason to say no.

...

Harry bit at his lip inside the train carriage, looking between the two people he was sharing a compartment with. Susan seemed to be keeping to herself, having brought her knees up to her chest in order to fight off some of the cold that crept through the windows. Hermione meanwhile had her eyes glued to the book in front of her for most parts, Harry sometimes noticing her hands lower ever so slowly to allow her to peer over the cover before retreating to the literature in front of her.

Needless to say, none of them had spoken for what seemed like an eternity.

"Harry," said Susan in such a tension breaking moment that the book dropped from Hermione's hands and crashed to the carriage floor.

"Sorry," apologized Hermione as she scooped up the book. "Please, continue."

"Way to break the mood," snickered Harry causing Hermione to glare daggers at him as she tried to find the page she had previously been on. Harry couldn't help but keep the smile on his face as he turned his attention back to Susan. "You were saying?"

"I was just curious is all," said Susan looking towards the window.

"C'mon now, you can't just leave it hanging like that," said Harry wondering what it was that Susan had intended to ask.

"It's nothing, don't worry about it," replied Susan refusing to create eye contact. Silence reigned for half a minute before she felt compelled to glance around the compartment, finding both Harry and Hermione cheekily looking towards her. "...Fine."

"Yes," said Harry pumping his fist in success.

"Harry...what happened in the Prefect's bathroom?"

Any joy Harry had achieved in his brief victory was quickly snuffed out. He hadn't been unaware of the rumors spreading around the castle and like everything regarding him they seemed to get larger and more ludicrous with every passing hour. Last he had heard was that he had been invited into the Prefect's bathroom, where he had had to pass through a secret portal to protect a Mermaid Princess from a swarm of Grimlocks.

Ludicrous indeed.

Although probably not a bad idea if he decided to continue the Harry Potter Collection Series.

Something to ponder over.

Now, where were we.

"Actually, I'd like to know about that afternoon as well," said Hermione as she closed her book and placed it on her lap, bringing Harry's attention back to the conundrum at hand.

"Ah that," said Harry. "Before I retell the events of that fateful afternoon, pray do tell what you believe happened. Susan, would you like to go first?"

"Umm...well...last I heard..." stammered Susan before she buried her face into her hands. From behind her palms she tried to say something but it just came out as nonsensical gibberish.

"Alright then, Hermione?"

"I honestly don't know what I believe," declared Hermione, doing her best to not recall some of the rumours she had heard.

"Well you two are no fun," said Harry with a sigh. "Alright then, I'll tell you this, but only once, and the information does not leave this carriage, understand?"

Susan immediately composed herself as both she and Hermione leant towards Harry, seemingly afraid that if he was to say the words too softly they would never learn the truth. "We understand," said Susan speaking for both herself and for Hermione.

"Alright then, so here's what happened..."

...

"...and by the end of it we were all better off and had learned quite a bit about ourselves," concluded Harry. "Any questions?"

"That was...mildly disappointing," declared Susan.

"And that wasn't a question."

"I have to agree with Susan, after everything that got built up to such a degree from students who didn't know any better, the actual event seems like a bit of a let down," said Hermione. "Don't get me wrong, I mean it's good that the rumours were just that but I thought something else had happened."

"Well if I remember correct you weren't all too keen on giving your description of the events," mocked Harry.

"If I'd told what I believe somehow I think it would both sound more entertaining and more believable than the truth," huffed Hermione.

"I'm an eleven year old boy, half the rumours spreading around could get the girls arrested, or in a few instances I would get arrested. Also for most of them I'd like to think that I'd actually hit puberty before even contemplating doing half that stuff."

"Guess you're right," said Susan as she leaned against the carriage bench. "When you didn't defend against any of the accusations though you can imagine why people became just a little suspicious."

"What, destroy the story before it began, I'd like to think that people can have their fun before I just tell them the truth," said Harry with a shrug of the shoulders.

"Are you ever going to tell the truth?" asked Hermione.

"Probably not."

"Prat."

...

As the magical locomotive pulled in to King's Cross Station, Harry looked out the window at all the parents and relatives who were waiting to pick up their children. He couldn't help but wince as he momentarily spotted Lucius Malfoy who looked as stoic as ever along with what Harry assumed was his wife...or mistress...slave?

No, mistress at worst.

Could purebloods own slaves?

Harry shook his head to rid himself of such thoughts focusing more on the fact that in a little over half a year the 'supposed former' Death Eater would slip one of Voldemort's Horcrux into Ginny Weasley's cauldron. As far as Harry could tell he hadn't changed anything in the timeline thus far to prevent that from happening. His main concern though was how was he going to destroy the item? He didn't want to take the risk by allowing the year to play out, he was well aware that the number of small changes could possibly change a Petrification into a death.

He needed to end this nightmare before it began.

"Earth to Harry, hello?" said Susan waving her hand in front of Harry's face.

"What now?"

"You were really out of it, weren't you," said Hermione as she opened the door, a number of students already with their belongings walking down the aisle towards the exit. "Our trunks are likely on the platform already."

"Sorry, just thinking about a few things," said Harry as he got to his feet.

"You don't have to worry about my aunt, she's really a nice person," said Susan completely missing the mark.

"I hope so," said Harry deciding to play along. Thinking about Susan's aunt was a much better solution than saying that you were trying to figure out how to save people's lives.

"Don't worry, you'll get to meet her soon," said Susan a little distantly.

"Wait, you mean she's not on the platform?" asked Hermione reading between the lines.

"No, because of work she's gone almost all day and even some nights," answered Susan as she turned her gaze towards the floor. Harry meanwhile was starting to understand why Susan had invited him over for Christmas and unfortunately it wasn't as pleasant as he had originally hoped.

Resolving himself, Harry silently promised that this would be a Christmas that Susan would never forget.

...

The three of them had waited for most of the families to have left before getting off of the Hogwarts Express. Hermione had suggested that her family could drive the two of them home but Harry pointed out that there was little chance that they could fit three trunks into the back of the Granger family car. She then offered to wait with them until Susan's aunt came to pick them up but Susan had none of it and simply stated that they would catch the bus. While Hermione clearly didn't like it there was nothing more she could say as her family waved her over. Before she left however she gave both Susan and Harry a hug before grabbing her trunk and heading to where her parents were waiting.

"Did you know that this would happen?" asked Harry.

"That what would happen?" asked Susan in return as both she and Harry grabbed hold of their belongings.

"That your aunt wouldn't be here," said Harry looking towards Susan to find that her gaze had shot towards the floor again, giving Harry the answer he didn't particularly want to know. "Alright then, let's catch the bus, which stop do we pick it up from?"

"Wait, you don't know about the Knight Bus?" asked Susan. Harry shook his head feigning ignorance. "Well Mister Potter, allow me to show you one of the funnest ways of travelling."

...

After a brutal ride in where Harry's face had plastered itself against the windows no fewer than five times, Susan and Harry arrived at their destination. It had been a fairly long ride with them having had to travel to the outskirts of London to a part of town where Harry had never frequented before. All he knew was that it was a heck of a long way from Privet Drive and that was good enough for him.

The house was quite plain on the outside, brick exterior with windows leading into the living room and kitchen. Outside of the house was roughly four foot of lawn which had a plethora of flowers circling the grass ranging in all kinds of varieties and colours. From an outsider's perspective it looked quite quaint.

Harry meanwhile could feel the magic in the air. Considering that Susan's aunt held a position in the Ministry of Magic, quite a high ranking position if his memory served him correctly, there was no surprise that he could sense the protective wards around the property. He couldn't help but ponder what the wards around the Minister of Magic's home was like.

"It's not much, but it's home," said Susan with a smile as she walked along the narrow footpath towards the front door.

"Let me guess," said Harry as he began to follow. "Is it bigger on the inside?"

As Susan unlocked the door and stepped inside she looked over her shoulder. "Interesting idea but no, we don't need the space," she answered as she dragged her belongings inside. "As a warning, please take off your shoes within and put them in the box, otherwise Tiddy's going to get cross with you."

"Tiddy?" repeated Harry as he followed suit and entered the house. As he took off his shoes he spotted the box in question which was empty of all other footwear despite having clearly seen Susan put her shoes away. With a shrug of the shoulders, Harry did as he had been instructed and put his shoes inside and watched with intrigue as his footwear slid into an unseen compartment.

For a moment he wondered how he was going to get his shoes back but figured that was for another time. Especially as he was ambushed by a house elf who had her arms on her waist and a look of disapproval upon her face. "If you are done close the door, silly fellow, or all hot air go bye bye," declared who Harry could only assume was Tiddy.

"Pleasure to meet you as well," said Harry as he did as instructed. Unlike the first few experiences with house elves, Tiddy wasn't wearing a pillowcase or some other sorry excuse for clothing but actual clothes that looked handmade. Harry doubted that Tiddy was a free elf and predicted that she had been given cloth to make her own garments.

Cheeky way of getting around it he supposed.

"Hurry 'long now, hurry," said Tiddy as she snapped her fingers causing Harry's belongings to begin floating down the corridor.

"What's the rush?" asked Harry but when he got no response he merely shrugged before opting to look around somewhat. Along the walls were framed photos, some hanging from hooks while others rested on a cabinet filled with chinaware. The faces were unfamiliar to him but their was an air of happiness surrounding all of the photos, especially with one of whom he could only assume was Susan who seemed perplexed by her first tooth protruding from her gum.

"I wondered if you'd see that," said Susan causing Harry to turn in her direction. The red haired girl walked closer to where he was standing and grabbed the frame and did her best to move it but it refused to budge. "My aunt put a Sticking Charm on it after she put it up and says once I'm old enough to use magic out of school I can put it somewhere else. I know she doesn't want to get rid of it but it's so embarrassing!"

"I think it's cute," said Harry causing Susan to scowl at him. The idea of saying that she at least had baby photos came to mind but he felt that he would kill the mood if he did so. "So, where am I camping?"

"In my room," said Susan causing Harry's jaw to drop.

"Well, that's unexpected," he said as he regained his senses some seconds sooner than he should have.

"Where is your mind at, Harry Potter, it's just a sleepover until school begins," said Susan sternly.

It was quite clear where Harry's mind was at; he was seventeen years old technically and as such that came with all the perks of having found out that women were very attractive creatures. Unfortunately David Attenborough had yet to release a documentary on the species and as such he was usually at a loss whenever members of the opposite sex were involved. Basic lesson One 'O' One however stipulated that sleeping in the same room as a member of the female gender tended to lead into something more.

Provided that said individuals were not interrupted by a third party, already had previous or current relations that prevented or prohibited further progress, one party refused to give consent, were related, etc, etc.

Whenever he next figured lesson One 'O' One was being held, he had to be there for a refresher course.

"Missus and Missuses friend must be coming for lunch now, Tiddy made good healthy lunch for them," announced the house elf appearing from the kitchen. "Madamus bes on her way soon and youse must be fed."

On their way to the kitchen though Harry caught something out of the corner of his eye in the living room and found himself freezing in place. It had been a long time since he had looked at such an instrument, especially after his aunt had forced him to learn how to play in order to listen to the tunes herself. Memories of rulers smacking across his knuckles were pushed aside however as he figured that he could finally use his talent for good.

...

Amelia Bones wasn't sure what to expect as she prepared to head home for the evening. Stepping into the fireplace, she partially expected pandemonium of some variety awaiting her considering just who she was housing. The reveal that Harry James Potter was alive after so much time had sent the world into turmoil for but a moment. How the child had yet given an interview of any way, shape or form only gave credit to Hogwarts as a whole. Anywhere else likely would have been plagued by reporters wanting to know the scoop that everyone was after.

Even at work she had kept tight lipped on the fact that the Boy Who Lived would be tucked away in her home over the festive season. Last thing she needed was somebody from the Prophet banging on her door wanting an interview while they were attempting to open Christmas presents. She was glad however that Susan would be having some company for those times when work kept her away, which was far too often in her mind.

She had never expected to have to try and juggle work and parenthood, the person whom her heart belonged to was somewhere she could never reach. After learning just what he had done she just couldn't bring it upon herself to love another again. That was until members of her family had been murdered, leaving her with the child she never thought she would have. Soon she found a new source for her love to flow.

Ironic in a twisted sort of way.

Amelia shook herself from her thoughts as her office vanished from view to reveal her living room. First thing she saw was Susan sitting on the sofa, her homework laid out in front of her on the coffee table. First thing she heard however sent shivers down her spine. Looking over to the corner of the living room she saw firstly Tiddy, her eyes closed with a finger in the air as she shuffled in circles slowly in something reminiscent of a dance. Shifting her gaze however she found her gaze upon whom she could only assume was Harry Potter, his back to her as he sat upon her brother's piano, playing a song she was unfamiliar with.

The song itself didn't matter but for every note that was stuck she found herself caught within the past. Her brother had won that piano in a Daily Prophet competition when he was younger and struggled to play it, barely able to string a dozen notes together, but Amelia had kept pushing him to try his best. Now, looking at the back of Harry, she could see her brother sitting at his piano after years of hard work having able to overcome the hurdles the instrument had given him.

A tear trickled down her face.

"Aunty," said Amelia from directly in front of the older woman, apparating there for all she knew. "Let's dance." The head of the DMLE had little choice as her niece dragged her to the impromptu dance floor and began swaying with the girl she considered her own daughter.

Amelia had expected a pleasant reunion.

She never expected a brilliant one.

...

 **Hope you enjoyed.**

 **Yes, Harry can play the piano. How, well that'll be explained eventually.**


	9. Chapter 9

Dinner that night was a surprisingly joyful event, Tiddy putting up a five star meal while Harry, Susan and Amelia joked and laughed around the table between bites. The mood from the piano had lasted for quite some while, Harry even getting dragged into a dance with Susan when Amelia cast a spell on the piano to repeat the same sixteen bars over and over. Susan had clearly had more time dancing than Harry had, the only moments he could recall dancing in the future was the disaster that was the Yule Ball and Bill's wedding, neither a particularly memorable occasion since both ended in disaster.

Harry struggled and did his best not to step on Susan's feet, his movements awkward and jagged, hardly as fluent and smooth as was the goal. "I still can't believe how uncoordinated you were," laughed Susan as she set her cutlery down, having finished her meal.

"Now, now, Susan," scolded Amelia playfully. "I'm sure you'd be more than happy to help Harry improve over the holidays, between your assignments of course."

"I hope I can keep up with your expectations, teacher," said Harry with a soft bow of the head causing Susan to blush.

"I expect these lessons to be proper," said Amelia. "There is to be no gallivanting about between the two of you under any circumstance."

"AUNTY!"

Harry chuckled for a moment before Amelia glared at him and he couldn't tell whether she was joking at her niece's expense or was serious. After helping himself to a glass of orange juice (absolutely grateful that his host didn't subject him to Hogwarts' oh so favourite pumpkin juice), Harry did his best to compose himself before subtly changing topics. "So...the Ministry...what's it like working under Fudge?" he asked.

Subtle indeed.

"Working under _Minister_ Fudge has it's benefits," said the head of the Bones family as she set aside her cutlery, dinner seemingly having come to an end. As Tiddy set about doing dishes, Amelia laced her fingers before staring intently at Harry. "Do you fancy a position in the Ministry when you finish your education?"

"I doubt we actually stop learning once we leave school," said Harry. "In such a case I would likely never work in the Ministry."

"Well played," said Amelia with a sly smile. For Susan meanwhile she remained silent, watching the conversation unfold. Despite what her eyes showed her, what she heard wasn't a conversation between her aunt and her peer; what she heard were two members of the magical community testing the waters around one another, learning what topics were safe to approach.

She had seen her aunt enter this mode many times when she had reporters and business partners come around to discuss something or another. She had remained tucked around the corner but she could hear the invisible barbs and shots that they would take at one another. By now she almost knew her aunt's routine since she was in control of the conversation. In which case, given the context, Susan assumed the next question would be...

"So what are your plans then once you finish your education at Hogwarts?" asked Amelia, clarifying her question.

Bingo.

"Well it would seem a bit drab and dull just going straight from the school to the workplace," said Harry, leaning back in his chair. "Perhaps I'll travel for a bit, get myself a backpack and head to France and see how much control I can have around a Veela family."

"Veela? I was unaware that Hogwarts' curriculum covered such topics in first year," said Amelia, mildly taken aback by Harry's comment. Susan meanwhile watched intently with unblinking eyes. Since her aunt had such a position of power within the Ministry many of those who came and spoke with her did so on the backfoot, never wanting to ruffle the head of the DMLE. Harry meanwhile seemed to be enjoying this game if the grin on his face was anything to go by, unafraid if he tread over any unspoken boundaries.

"Oh it's not within the curriculum, such knowledge would be unsafe amongst the masses and tourism would crumble with the knowledge that people's hearts could sway with the siren, or melt with the allure in this case. Wives would never permit their husbands to leave the country in fear that they would be tempted by that which they don't understand," said Harry.

"What don't we understand?" asked Susan, finally feeling the urge to speak. Immediately she could feel her aunt's gaze fall upon her and she wondered whether she had said something wrong.

"Well, from what we have spoken of, what do you now know of Veela?" asked Harry in response, taking a sip of his juice much like one would drink from a wine goblet.

"Umm...well...not much...I guess," said Susan sheepishly suddenly regretting having gotten into the conversation.

"Veela are, before all else, creatures of passion," explained Harry. He could still recall the brief time when he and his companions had camped at Fleur and Bill's dwelling during the Horcrux hunt. After he had buried Dobby, Fleur had approached him and told him about how special the bond he had shared with the elf was if he was to go to such lengths to ensure a safe journey to the afterlife. After that discussion Fleur had explained both the connection she shared with her husband and how she had almost fallen for Harry after he had saved her sister from the lake. This of course had taken him completely by surprise until she continued her explanation, the same one he was reciting now. "While we may be able to feel senses mildly, Veela have trouble keeping their emotions in control and are trained to do so from a young age. Imagine a situation where you are irritated, while you may be annoyed at the situation an untrained Veela could be infuriated. Are you with me thus far?"

Susan could only nod.

"So now, imagine when a Veela reaches puberty," said Harry. "Like most women, they want to eventually settle down with the one they love and raise a family. Before such a time though they go through the whole dating process, yadda yadda yadda, however, you have to remember the amount of passion that they possess. Like how most couples would like to believe that their first crush will be their one true love, Veela will almost demand it."

"I think I understand," said Susan slowly.

"If I may take this topic of conversation on a tangent," said Amelia before Harry got a chance to go further into his discussion. "I couldn't help but notice that during your explanation at the end you never mentioned the word 'boyfriend.' With all that you know I'm very sure you're aware that the majority of Veela are female so why not explain that they were trying to find their future husband?"

Harry could tell just what Amelia was searching for and while his words may have been picked he figured that he was in for a Knut, might as well make it a Galleon. "What's wrong with a Veela searching for a potential wife as opposed to a husband?" he asked.

"I would be careful with such thinking, Harry," said Amelia sternly.

"Really," said Harry as if in surprise. "I do recall a conversation I had with some older students and the topic of conversation swayed to kissing practise for when they eventually get a boyfriend. If in such a circumstance they are able to kiss one another then what is to prevent something more from developing? And if that were the case why must society judge them for it?"

"Kissing practise?" said Susan in confusion looking between Harry and her aunt.

"Would you like to take this one?" offered Harry to the eldest in the room.

"I think that's enough after dinner pleasantries," said Amelia as she stood up. "While I would like to continue this conversation I feel that the paperwork I have to complete must take priority. I trust the two of you will see yourself to bed at a reasonable hour."

Harry couldn't help but smile as the older woman excused herself and headed to her study, whether to do work or to have a drink was hard to deduce. Harry was sure that he had ruffled her feathers somewhat but he stood by his views. Turning her attention towards Susan he saw that her face was directed at the table and he could only assume that her mind had temporarily shut down in regards to the whole 'kissing practise.' "You alright?" he asked.

"Fine, absolutely fine," said Susan with a touch too much gusto as she stood up. "I think I'm going to go have a bath."

With that Harry found himself alone at the dining room table as Tiddy continued to do the dishes in the kitchen. Getting up from his chair, he moved into the living room and temporarily ignored the piano he had been playing earlier and instead chose to look at the bookshelf. He couldn't help but chuckle when he looked at the bottom shelf to see the almost complete collection of the stories centred around him. Bypassing the short stories and novels that plagued the middle rows he instead focused on the topmost shelf where what he declared the important books were.

Briefly returning to the dining room to gather a chair, Harry stood upon the wooden object and scanned the highest shelf. From his brief time outside of Hogwarts he knew that the magical society as a whole seemed like a rat on a wheel, always running without going anywhere. He was also aware that with the title he loathed so much he held a lot of sway over the populace. As far as he was concerned, he might as well use that sway to see whether or not he could break the wheel.

Selecting a few books of interest, Harry set about doing some homework of his own, lighting a couple of candles to work by as he scribbled on parchment. Traditions, politics, law, things that he should have learned in History of Magic (provided that that wasn't what was taught while he slept) he tried to study. He wasn't sure how long he had been at it when Tiddy came around and asked if there was anything he wanted to help. In hindsight 'Firewhiskey' probably wasn't the best answer to give, especially when the house elf delivered on his request.

Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, Harry went to the sink and diluted the alcohol substantially before setting about his work once more. Taking miniscule sips, he set about his work once more and focused on wizarding views on the Ministry declared 'creatures of near human intelligence' since that was the topic he had recently found himself discussing. Before he had been browsing anything and everything but now that night was creeping onwards he figured he needed a specific topic to work on.

This seemed as good a topic as any.

"That seems quite advanced for a first year student," said Amelia startling Harry. Before responding he looked at the candles he had lit earlier to see that they didn't even look as if they had begun to melt.

"Ah, enchanted," he said as if solving a riddle before looking outside to gauge the time. The pitch blackness that stared back at him informed him that he was probably awake a lot longer than he should have been. "Do I want to know what the time is?"

"Sometimes I find that these hours are the best to work," said Amelia as she took a seat on the couch next to Harry. "May I?"

"By all means," said Harry as he handed the parchment he had been working on, along with the two pages he had already finished. "Oh wow."

"Lost in thought," mused Amelia as Harry took a sip of his drink, wondering whether or not the head of the DMLE had a minor drinking Firewhiskey next to her. As she looked at Harry's first parchment he got his answer. "If this is as in depth as I believe it is I might need one of those as well."

"First thing that came into mind when Tiddy asked me for a drink," Harry answered truthfully. "Hope you don't mind."

"I'm more curious as to how a child such as yourself who grew up outside of the wizarding world is aware of Firewhiskey's existence," said Amelia before she requested Tiddy to fetch her a drink. Seconds ticked by as Amelia's eyes scrolled through the content in front of her, her gaze not even shifting when she was handed brown liquid on a handful of ice cubes.

Harry could only chuckle.

"You don't dally about, do you Mister Potter," stated Amelia as she placed the first page down and started working on the next.

"I think a study buddy of mine would be quite upset if I wasn't," Harry retorted cheekily.

Placing the paperwork down, Amelia turned her gaze towards him and Harry couldn't help but feel she was gauging him in every sense of the word. "I'm not going to inquire into how you know what you know, Hogwarts library is quite vast after all," said Amelia as she placed her drink on the table/workbench. "I will advise though that whatever action you wish to take in the future is done with extreme caution. Your list there of things you want to look into will be met with much resistance, not all of it general."

"With all due respect, Miss Bones," said Harry formerly as her equal, not as a student and definitely not as a child. "I do not wish to enter a society where I feel as if I am going to merely walk the same paces that my predecessors did before me and the same that those who come after me will follow. Eventually someone is going to realize we are failing to progress forward. Those who control the votes are primarily from wealthy Pureblood backgrounds who put their own priorities first. As a result, Muggleborn witches and wizards will never break the glass ceiling and half-humans will always be seen as second class citizens, possibly even third. Now tell me, is this the world we wish to leave to the next generation and the generation after that?"

Amelia was silent as she picked up her drink and downed the contents in a single mouthful, surprising Harry somewhat. Placing the glass down once more, she focused on Harry. "So what is it you propose? As soon as you say something unexpected the papers will claim that you are merely seeking the attention you demand as the saviour of the world. Whatever topic you are trying to push will evidently fall upon itself and likely never have a chance of picking up where it left off for a century. So not only what is it you propose but how do you plan on proposing it?"

"I need connections," stated Harry.

"And my niece is one of your connections," declared Amelia.

Now it was Harry's time to indulge in some of his drink, nowhere as much as Amelia had inhaled but the brief moments allowed him to recover from the verbal jab. "Susan has been a friend to me, something I feared I may never have growing up," said Harry solemnly. "I tell you this in confidence that you will not allow word of this to spread but you will learn more of Harry Potter now than any publication on 'The Bow Who Lived.'"

Amelia raised her hand, pausing Harry before he began and clicked her fingers twice, Tiddy quickly appearing around the corner and topping up her drink, much higher than it had been first time round. Picking up the glass, she gestured for Harry to continue.

And he did.

He didn't recall much from his youth, all of the punishments he had endured seemed to roll into one after so much time. He instead focused on important points, including his skill with the piano of which Amelia was not too pleased to hear the origins of. Every now and then he would pause to drink or allow the older woman to ask a question but thankfully she could tell when Harry didn't want to go into much detail. Harry himself in most cases had merely forgotten insignificant points over time and merely wanted to use this social isolation as a way to explain to Amelia why he wanted to change the world for the better.

What better way to do that than with a sob story?

"I think I am beginning to understand your view against the world, Mister Potter, and I am glad you sought to confide such intel with me, keeping this bottled up for so long may have eventually affected you magically and mentally," stated Amelia. "Being the head of my department I have seen many try to change the will of those in positions of higher power, and I have seen all of them fail. Mister Potter, I don't regret telling you earlier that you will be facing an uphill struggle from the get go."

"I can tell that you have omitted some details and I will not pressure you into telling me everything," Amelia continued. "I just want you to know that I will be here for you if you want to talk again. Likewise if you're at Hogwarts you're more than welcome to send an owl."

"Thank you," said Harry gratefully.

"Now, I think that it'll be best if I retire for the night and while I should make you go to bed as well it would seem as if you're mature enough to make your own decisions in this regard," said Amelia as she got to her feet. "I will warn you however that Tiddy does not enjoy people being late for breakfast and many a pan has been banged in order to ensure that meals are eaten on time. Good night."

Harry merely watched as Amelia made her way to her bedroom via the kitchen to deposit her empty glass. As soon as she was out of view he contemplated the amount of work laid out in front of him. Figuring that he still had some time before his unofficial homework needed to be completed, Harry picked up the nearby candle and used it to help guide his way to his temporary abode. Only when he was outside the door did he remember the fact that he would be sharing the bedroom with a member of the opposite sex.

Swallowing nervously, he braced himself for whatever he would find on the other side of the door. To find Susan half hanging off the bed with a dribble of drool threatening to crash to the carpet was not the image he had expected.

Smiling, he used his free hand to adjust Susan so that she was closer to the middle of the bed before making his way over to his blowup mattress. Burying himself under the doona, Harry blew out the candle and allowed the room to sink into darkness.

...

The following day Amelia had booked off of work to spend some quality time with Susan and Harry. Considering that Harry was their guest she had asked him for suggestions for the day's activities. Eventually he chose the movies, having never really gone to them himself he figured that it was high time he enjoyed what should have been a normal pastime.

Scrounging through her drawers for Muggle money, the three of them headed down the street wrapped up in several layers of thick clothing in order to fight off the cold. Susan had seemingly recovered from whatever had been eating at her the previous day but Harry knew that that was merely her trying to relax. There was very little chance she would just forget the entire conversation.

The walk was most welcome and the topic of chatter was much lighter than the previous night's. Roughly half an hour later they arrived at the movie theatre and had the ever so fun job of deciding on a movie that would suit what they were after. The clerk at the counter recommended going to the latest Disney film, apparently a hit with families. He seemed mildly amused when Amelia did her best to ensure that the movie that they would be watching was age appropriate and that the young man wasn't misleading them.

After much debating and a large box of popcorn to share between them they eventually found their seats amongst other families, setting Amelia's mind at ease. It had been such a long time since she herself had ventured into such a Muggle attraction and perhaps if she was lucky it would teach the two children a valuable lesson.

...

"...Tale as old as time, Song as old as rhyme, Beauty and the Beast," sang Susan and Harry in unison as they made their way down the street, Amelia trudging along behind them. The film, in Susan's own words, had been incredible. Her love for art had only exploded when she realized that she wasn't going to be watching what most would consider a normal film but rather hand drawn animation, made without the use of magic! She had no idea how it was done but she loved it all the same.

"Aunty, how do the pictures move like that without the use of magic?" asked Susan after ensuring that nobody was near.

"I'm afraid I don't know," said Amelia honestly. Since Susan would likely continue to harass her on the topic she would need to find the answer soon. Perhaps Arthur Weasley would be able to help, he loved Muggle contraptions after all.

"So what did you think of your first movie, Susan?" asked Harry.

"It was amazing, can we see it again?" asked Susan all too enthusiastically.

"Another time perhaps," said Amelia quickly as they rounded the stretch to their home only to find that somebody was waiting on their doorstep. "Oh great."

"What is it, aunty?" asked Susan, noticing the change in mood. Harry could immediately tell why as he saw someone he wanted to be nowhere near for a long time to come. Even recollecting what the woman would write in the future sent shivers down his spine and he could only imagine what would happen were the witch were to recognize him.

"Ah Madam Bones, how wonderful it is to see you," said Rita Skeeter in a sickly sweet tone.

"Miss Skeeter, to what do I owe the pleasure," said Amelia as they closed the gap. "If you wish to enquire about something related to my work or the Ministry please note that I am not in the mood as I specifically took this day off to be away from the workplace."

"Well, that's all well and good but I'm afraid news can't wait, the people need to hear what the head of the DMLE has to say, even if it on the blandest of topics," said Rita trying to entice more intel from the witch.

"Susan, why don't you show your friend down to the park," said Amelia.

It wasn't a suggestion.

"Come on, Harry," said Susan causing the boy in question to inwardly groan. Despite the garbage that Rita 'reported' she wasn't blind enough to not put two and two together. He was right when fifteen minutes later as they were throwing snowballs around the playground they were approached by the very woman Harry had hoped to avoid.

Harry braced himself for what was to come, having spent the time in the park planning how best to tackle this oncoming storm. He had just had this conversation the previous night about how his word would be followed by the masses just because of who he was. He wouldn't raise any of the topics he had discussed with Amelia but the same time he was determined not to play the ignorant child.

He merely prayed that whatever he said didn't get spun too far out of control.

"Excuse me dearies," said Rita getting their attention. "I'm afraid we weren't introduced earlier and I can't help but feel that that was somewhat rude."

Susan could tell that Rita wasn't interested in her, she had seen reporters enough times to know when they were after a single bit of information and she didn't have the intel the woman wanted. "Okay," said Harry plainly as he rubbed his hands together to fight off the cold, or at least make it look like he was doing so. He had to admit that the mittens he was wearing were incredibly toasty.

Rita cleared her throat before extending her arm. "I'm Rita Skeeter, pleasure to meet you," she said putting on a smile that was almost too big for her face.

"Harry Potter," he said without any real reason to hide his identity. Had Susan not said his name earlier he likely would have gotten away without this confrontation.

"Ah, I thought that you might be the Boy Who Lived," said Rita excitedly as they shook hands. A flick of her other wrist caused her enchanted quill and parchment to float in the air next to her.

"You do know that this area isn't exactly protected from Muggles," said Harry, Rita quickly catching on and grabbing hold of her equipment.

"Thank you Mister Potter, I'm afraid my excitement almost got the better of me," said Rita. "If you could spare me a minute of your time there are a few questions I would like to ask you."

"If you so wish, just know that if your questions become too private I will not answer them," declared Harry flatly.

"Noted," said Rita. "Just out of curiosity, this is the first interview you've ever given, right?"

"Correct," said Harry, quickly glancing over at Susan who was silently watching.

"Excellent, I feared you may have talked with an inferior reporter but now that I know this is an exclusive. First and foremost I have to ask, where have you been all this time? Given your celebrity status many families would have gladly adopted you once your parents were killed."

' _Well that was blunt,'_ thought Harry composing himself. Rita wanted a reaction, anything that she could exploit. If he reacted aggressively she could go into how by having been removed from magical society Muggles had made him abusive. If he cried then she would be able to get an article where the general populace felt sad for him. "I went to go live with my mother's sister and her family," he said slowly. "As my last living relative I believe it was the correct decision at the time."

"'At the time,' you say," said Rita intrigued. "So now do you believe that there was a better option?"

"That is neither here nor there, what was done is done and cannot be changed."

"Very well, might as well get the boring stuff out of the way now; what House do you represent at Hogwarts?" asked Rita.

"Whilst I am in Gryffindor I disagree with the values that the Houses create outside of Hogwarts," said Harry.

"...Go on."

"Before I was even sorted I had a fellow first year student whisper into my ear that every bad wizard in the Wizarding society learned magic whilst in Slytherin House. Despite whether or not this is true I don't particularly care; what I do think is important is the public opinion. How can a boy my age have such prejudices?. All Gryffindors must show courage, every Slytherin must be evil, all Hufflepuffs loyal and Ravenclaw must house the smartest students. By stepping into Hogwarts with these frames of mind as soon as children learn what house they are in it changes who they are as a person primarily on the fact they now believe that they have to abide by the status quo."

"That, by all means, was not an answer I had been expecting for such a poor question but you raise good points," said Rita as she scribbled away on her page. "Does this mean however that you don't believe you possess the courage to be in Gryffindor?"

"Courage is in everyone; the courage to hand in your homework, talk to new people, ask that special someone on a date etc. Courage cannot be defined until the situation where courage is needed arrives."

"My, you are an interesting one, here I was thinking that years in the Muggle world would have reduced you to a shell of what you could have been. Speaking of, I feel like the readers must know what it was like making the transition from the Muggle world to the real world?" asked Rita.

Harry took a sharp intake of breath to prevent himself from asking her why she believed the Muggle's weren't classified as part of the 'real' world. Silently reminding himself that he needed to keep on her good side for the potential future, he chose his words carefully. "The transition was a bit of shock to be perfectly honest, but it's thanks to friends like Susan here who helped me get used to things."

"Well said," stated Rita before turning sharply and looking momentarily at Susan. "Care to comment on your relationship with Mister Potter?"

Susan's mouth opened and closed a couple of times as she hadn't expected to be brought into the conversation at all. "Well, he's uh a friend," said Susan slowly.

"Really, just a friend, pity," said Rita as she took some notes. "One day perhaps would you hope to consider Mister Potter as more than a friend?"

The blush that appeared on Susan's cheeks was more than just a little intense, Harry could almost see the heat from it beginning to melt the snow around. "And with that I think our business for the day is concluded, Miss Skeeter," said Harry interjecting himself back to the central point. "As much fun as this has been I believe that we should be returning before we miss lunch, I'm sure you've everything that you need?"

"Well, I'll fill in the blanks here and there but I'm sure I've got enough to fit you on the front page; provided it's a quiet day otherwise," said Rita. "Would you be interested in another exclusive anytime soon?"

"At the moment I fear there isn't much more to tell you," said Harry as he grabbed Susan's hand, causing her to shudder momentarily as she broke out of the paralysis that Rita's question had put her in. "Perhaps our paths will cross once more down the track and we will be able to converse once more. Until such time I must bid you adieu."

"Very well then, until next time," dismissed Rita as she strode off, probably upset that she hadn't been able to get more information out of Harry. Harry meanwhile was praying that whatever blanks she filled in wouldn't come to bite him on his arse anytime soon.

"C'mon Susan, let's go back to your place before we freeze out here," said Harry as he went to release his hold of Susan's hand. Susan meanwhile only tightened her grip, only minutely but enough for Harry to notice. Complying with her unspoken request, the two of them walked side by side back to the house, not breaking the contact they shared.

...

 _The Boy Who Lived - The Boy Behind the Myth_

 _Loving readers, I have enjoyed my years working in the journalism industry. Starting my way with simple articles about high fashion and celebrity gossip I have gone on on to write about some of the biggest events in the last decade. None of these however compare with what happened yesterday. I was on my way to speak with Amelia Bones, the head of the DMLE, when who should be staying alongside her and her niece this festive season but none other than Harry Potter!_

 _After concluding my business with Amelia Bones I quickly sought out young Mister Potter. All we had heard about him were rumours and myths and I wanted to find out the truth about the Boy Who Lived. For years we had merely speculated and now finally, after so long I was about to get answers._

 _You do have to remember, dear readers, that Harry Potter is still a child within his first year of Hogwarts and therefore I had to treat him as such. I quickly aback however when I found that speaking to Mister Potter as the child that he was was completely unnecessary. While he assured me that this was his first time having an interview he must have been bracing himself from the day he discovered just who he was._

 _The child spoke with caution, not because he wanted to avoid getting into trouble but rather because he knew that his words would be reaching my audience. He didn't want to leave anything to chance and thus was very clear and precise with his words. While shaken at first I suddenly knew just what I had gotten myself into._

 _And I couldn't be happier._

 _Here was the child who had defeated You Know Who speaking like somebody thrice his age. On more than one occasion I forgot that this was indeed an eleven year old standing in front of me, such was his composure. He was fearless in front of me, determined to speak his mind and he dared not consider the consequences. Such boldness will likely lead him to ruin but it will be a highly enjoyable journey to witness from today onwards._

 _I could bore you with Mister Potter's words splayed out for you like a fish on display but when attempting to put his words onto parchment I must admit that I failed to relay the passion he felt. He questioned the House system of Hogwarts, a system that has been around for centuries, and attacked the beliefs of the founders; never in all my years have I seen such audacity, witnessing it from a child made it so much more believable._

 _Continued on Page 4_

"I assume you think that could have gone better," said Amelia as she lay down the latest issue of the Daily Prophet.

"She was always going to twist my words," said Harry as he cut into his breakfast. "Isn't that what journalists do, avoid the truth in order to speculate on something which is more likely to sell papers?"

"I'm morally obligated to say that that shouldn't be the case," said Amelia as she took a sip of orange juice. "What Rita reports however is often corrupted in one way or another. Her article on you, while may have traces of lies scattered about the page, you don't seem to be complaining."

"Why should he, Harry told her off good," declared Susan as she buttered a slice of toast. "She'll have to think twice before trying to interview him again."

While Amelia smiled at Susan's childlike demeanour she couldn't help but admit how true the statement was. Harry had shown that he was a lot more vocal than many would have believed and not in the 'I'm a twelve year old hyped up on sugar and need to discuss everything" kind of way. She sincerely doubted that Rita would approach again over the holidays.

Before anymore could be said there was a screech as an owl landed on the windowsill, a letter held within it's beak. "Could you get that Susan?" Amelia asked of her niece.

Trading the letter for a piece of toast, Susan opened the letter and read the contents, her expression becoming more exaggerated with each passing moment. "Everything alright?" asked Harry.

"The Minister's coming here," said Susan slowly.

"When?" asked Amelia.

"In five minutes."

...

 **Hope you enjoyed. Til next time.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

 **...**

Harry had known that it would only be a matter of time after the Daily Prophet had been sold that this following confrontation would come to pass. Rita though was easy to please since she had merely wanted a scoop. His new opposition however would demand that much more from him. Thankfully though, for this chat he would have Amelia by his side and she seemed just as thrilled as he was that this encounter was taking place.

"Madam Bones, thank you for granting us entry," said Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic. "I'm sorry for intruding upon you at such short notice."

Short notice indeed. "You're always welcome in my home, Minister," said Amelia. "I was unaware that you would be bringing a guest with you, something I must say I was unprepared for."

"Oh don't mind me," said Dolores Umbridge. "I'm merely here as an observer, I assure you I won't be any trouble."

Amelia doubted that but said nothing.

"Now, enough dilly dallying, where is young Mister Potter?" asked Cornelius, looking around anxiously. Amelia watched Cornelius with a wary eye; she had to admit that Harry had handled himself in a professional manner given the article that was written about him. Even speaking of it afterwards just went to show that he knew what needed to be done in the face of a journalist. What the highest political figure in Magical Britain wanted with Harry was yet to be discovered and with Dolores in the background making notes it would be a whole other kettle of shrimp... at least that's what she thought the Muggle saying was.

Upon hearing himself be summoned, Harry waited several seconds in the kitchen with Susan who looked troubled by this whole scenario. "Don't worry, I'll be fine," said Harry reassuringly. He himself had shivered quite substantially when he had heard the sickly sweet voice of Umbridge, one of the few people he had never wished to meet this time round. Susan gave him a comforting hug before Harry stepped out into the open, bracing himself for what was about to come.

"What are you wearing, boy? Get decent this instance!" Dolores almost screamed at Harry as he rounded the corner into the room.

"What, something wrong with what I'm wearing?" asked Harry gesturing to the gray trackpants and the fact that he wasn't wearing a top. "I'm afraid the majority of my clothes are currently being washed, as this was meant to be the day where Susan and I would hang around the household and do our homework. If you'd let us known you were coming a bit earlier, I could've seen to dressing myself a bit better."

Amelia did her best to hide the smile that threatened to spread across her face. Indeed, today had been their wash day but Harry had more than enough clothes and not even half of them were getting cleaned. It seemed as if this was a game to Harry, one she was more than willing to watch and enjoy.

"Amelia, you have a daughter here, don't you," stated Dolores.

"Actually she's my niece..."

"It is of no importance, go throw some of her clothes on and do make yourself look decent," demanded Fudge's undersecretary.

"Alright then," said Harry with a shrug as he turned and left the room, wicked plans on his mind.

"Good grief," huffed Dolores.

"Well it is our fault for not having arranged this in a more orderly fashion," reasoned Fudge. "As you can understand though, our time was limited and so being we should accommodate for such occurrences. I imagine that young Harry only brought a limited supply of clothing for the short break after all."

"Right you are," said Amelia. She meanwhile had a feeling she knew what was coming next and while part of her begged for her imagination to be running wild she couldn't help but feel excited.

"The boy should know better regardless, though considering he was raised by Muggles it is not surprising, I'm more surprised he had as big a vocabulary as he did," stated Dolores.

Now Amelia really hoped that Harry did more than she expected. "I hope that you aren't insinuating that all Muggleborn children behave that way," said Amelia with a hint of a warning in her voice.

"Of course they do, Hogwarts proves to show that only those that are at least half pure are able to find success after their studies have concluded," declared Dolores.

"That would be because the glass ceiling is about a foot off the ground," stated Harry as he made his reappearance in one of Susan's summer dresses, a gorgeous yellow in colour with pink flowers around the hem. "Those of Muggle origins are treated as second class citizens because of their lack of a name to fall back on, as opposed to the skills and resources they could bring to a community dedicated to remaining in the dark ages."

The three adults found themselves in a conundrum as their mouths opened and closed unsure how best to proceed; in Amelia's case it was a question of whether to leave the room and cast a silencing charm so she could burst out in laughter. "How dare you dress in such a manner!" shouted Madam Umbridge.

"I believe your words were, 'go throw some of her clothes on,'" stated Harry. "These are indeed some of Susan's clothes and might I add that I feel as if I look mighty fine in them, although I'm afraid it makes my butt look too big."

He could hear Susan giggling around the corner as he watched Umbridge's mind temporarily shatter.

"Excluding your choice in...uh...attire," said Fudge carefully choosing his words, "I must ask why you feel such feelings towards the magical society. You've only learned of your heritage upon your last birthday and yet you feel it is within your right to question the ways of the Ministry?"

"Tell me, Minister, if you were to go on a diplomatic trip to India, for example, would you not take every moment you could learning of the culture and heritage to best understand just what it was you were going to encounter?" asked Harry.

"Yes, well, I believe I would..."

"Then can the same not be said for me? I've been trying to learn all that I could about the wizarding world, only to find out that we are being outpaced by giant slugs?"

"Well, I'm sure you've only skimmed the surface..."

"Trust me, I haven't," stated Harry coldly.

Fudge couldn't help but feel intimidated by the eleven year old boy crossdressing in front of him. This had not been how he had expected this talk to have gone, the boy was meant to be glad to meet the head of the British wizarding society and he would use his charm to ensure that if the time came the boy would throw his support behind him. What they had discussed so far was so left of field that he was ill prepared to continue on this path.

He could rectify this however.

"I believe we got off on the wrong foot, allow me to introduce myself, I'm...

"Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic and whatever other titles you have," said Harry sharply. "Don't try and change the subject."

"How dare you speak to the Minister like that!" screamed Dolores, having returned to the land of the living.

"Dolores, if you are unable to contain yourself in my house I will have to ask you to leave," warned Amelia. "You should be ashamed of yourself for allowing a prepubescent boy to rile you up in such a manner."

"Thank you," said Harry over his shoulder before returning his icy glare towards the Minister. "Now, without the annoying voices manipulating your opinion on each and every matter, shall we discuss how Britain's magical community could be changed for the better? We could start with an internship for one Muggleborn student to work in the Ministry immediately following their graduation. That'd be a nice improvement. now wouldn't it? Or if you want to discuss something else we could talk about how Werewolves are practically removed from society because they were attacked and forced into a situation they couldn't receive any help or assistance for? If neither of those topics tickle your fancy, why don't we discuss how my godfather Sirius Black was sentenced to life in Azkaban without a trial for a crime he didn't commit!"

Harry stopped himself cold as he realized just what he had said as all eyes focused on him intently

It didn't take long for Harry to notice the hand movements Dolores was making, especially after he had successfully managed to get under her skin. He wasn't the only one however. Only as Madam Umbridge's hand had clasped around her did she pause as she found Amelia's wand pointed straight at her face. "Don't you dare raise your wand against a guest of this house!" threatened Amelia.

"You defend this ruffian? This brat without mannerst!" seethed Dolores in anger.

"This child has not only bested you at your own game but made a mockery of everything you've said since you stepped through my door. Now, I ask you politely to leave this house, before I Transfigure you into the toad that hides beneath your skin," warned Amelia.

"Are you threatening your superior?" asked Dolores trying to make herself feel like she was the victim in this case.

"Outside, Dolores," commanded Fudge.

"But Minister..."

"Now!" shouted Fudge, Harry surprised at the amount of backbone that the head of the British Wizarding World was showing. Did Fudge always have this much spine to him? Did something happen in the next couple of years to cripple him mentally?

Beaten and ashamed, Dolores did her best to march out of the house with her back straight as if to radiate some kind of power despite the verbal beatdown she'd just received. Even when she exited the house nobody could hear the door close as if she still trying to show that she was in control of the situation.

"Sorry about that, I'm afraid Dolores can get a tad protective over certain subjects," said Cornelius, his demeanour shifting back into the jolly fellow portrayed in the papers. "I do have to say Mister Potter that your attitude, while startling, may get you far one day."

"Come again?" said Harry in confusion.

"Not many are prepared to openly discuss such topics outside of locked doors, fewer willing to back up their statements. I believe once you turn of age if you were to display such courage and ferocity towards any topic you feel strongly towards that you may be able to get things in motion that have remained stagnant for decades," said Fudge.

"Thanks," said Harry taken aback.

"Now I believe it's time I returned to the office, I must say this minor ordeal has reminded me that there is work to be done and I shouldn't dilly dally about. Madam Bones, Mister Potter, I wish you both a good day and happy holidays." With his speech done, Cornelius tipped his bowler hat lightly before turning towards the exit. It was only once the door was closed that Harry realised that despite everything that had been said the sly man had still managed to get away without answering any of Harry's questions.

"I never thought I'd see the day," said Amelia as the closed behind the Minister.

"Is everything alright?" asked Susan, making her way into the living room.

"I think so," said Harry slowly. "Feels like I've just seen both sides of the Galleon."

"Well," said Amelia clapping her hands together to shake everyone out of their slump. "I think we need to do something with the rest of the day, and I have just the activity."

...

Diagon Alley was full of life as Harry, Susan and Amelia marched down the street intent on their Christmas shopping. After their confrontation with the Minister and his Undersecretary (of which Harry still had no clue what the position meant) Amelia declared that they should spend the rest of the day doing their Christmas shopping. It seemed however that they weren't the only ones who were leaving their shopping to the last minute.

After a quick trip to Gringotts where Harry withdrew what he felt would be enough money, they ventured from shop to shop, keeping close track of one another lest they get trampled beneath the sale stampede. The only time they did break away from each other's view was when they purchased presents for one another. With something on their mind they would vanish into a specific shop and return with heavily disclosed bags.

None of them questioned what had been purchased.

Eventually with arms full they headed towards an Owl Post and sent off their gifts. For Hermione Harry sent a couple of books focused around runes and advanced potion brewing. While the content was nowhere near what they should be learning for several years Harry had little doubt that Hermione would push herself to understand the topics.

As plain and boring as it sounded, he sent Ron some jumpers just so that he would have something else to where besides the patented 'Weasley' jumpers. While Harry was sure that they were made with the utmost care the material Molly Weasley used was itchy as buggery. At least that way Ron could stay both warm and comfortable.

He had contemplated sending more presents out to members of Potter Club but ultimately chose against it, at least for now. Maybe in years to come he would do something for them but for now he only had one more gift to send. "Who's that for?" asked Susan. "I can see you're not putting your name on it."

"Yea, this one I want sent anonymously," said Harry as the owl took the package and flew off.

"I'm sure whoever it is will like their present," said Amelia affirmatively.

Harry knew they would.

...

Albus Dumbledore wasn't the fondest person of the Yuletide celebration. The season had proved to be one of little variety and Dumbledore was not one to grow into a routine.

Slicing open the envelope which held another Season's Greetings card, this one complete with the cheerful sound of House Elves singing. Closing the card (which had been sent by a member of the Wizengamot) Albus rubbed at his eyes. The morning had barely started and already he was contemplating returning to his chambers to get some more rest. There were duties to attend to however and he would not be tardy to the lunch feast where he was expected to attend. As hilarious as it would be to appear to the party late (he was sure Professor Flitwick would get quite the chuckle out of it) he was not the slightest bit tardy and would arrive precisely when lunch would begin.

The squawk of Fawkes directed his attention to the assortment of brightly wrapped gifts that he had been sent. It didn't take a genius to figure out that a vast majority of them could be labelled under literature, fiction or nonfiction it really didn't matter. Having lived as long as he had he had amassed an exemplary library with his personal collection housing almost a quarter of what the school's library held. That being said, any doubles he had usually ended up donated to Hogwarts as there was no need for him to hold onto them.

There was one package however which confused him somewhat. Levitating a pile of books off of it, Albus found himself stumped at the plain cardboard box devoid of any wrapping. He was on edge however as he saw the letters 'PC' emblazed proudly on the top.

Casting a plethora of charms he ensured that the box wasn't jinxed or cursed before edging closer, thankful that none of the Hogwarts staff were here to witness his timidness. He had nothing against the club, he was even quite grateful for the joy that it spread around the halls but after the prank against young Harry Potter he couldn't help but be cautious. He knew surely that even if it were a prank against him that it wouldn't be malicious in nature, Potter Club didn't give off that vibe.

That being said he did actually want to meet with the group personally to ensure that they were taking proper precautions in order not to deal harm to themselves or their intended targets. He wasn't so naive as to see their enchanting displays as mere spells that academic students could achieve on their own. One wrong wrist movement or pronunciation could possibly have catastrophic results.

Once his final charm had been cast, Dumbledore put away his wand and knelt down next to the package, ignoring the mild discomfort in his knees. Opening it up he half expected something to leap out of him but what he saw only confused him more. Reaching in he pulled out a calf length thick woolen sock. He didn't know how but somebody within Potter Club's ranks knew that he had wanted something mundane and ordinary.

Yet they had still decided to mock him.

Looking in, one would have expected to find an identical sock but nay, there were merely a multitude of various socks, no two the same. Albus found himself chuckling at the prank pulled on him as he selected two socks which he would wear throughout the day whilst silently wishing the members of Potter Club a Merry Christmas.

...

Ignoring the constant chuffing of the Hogwarts Express, Harry listened to the conversation around him, rarely chipping in with his own recount of his holiday as Susan had already covered the majority of their activities. Thankfully she had decided to omit the confrontation with the Minister, something which Harry would be happy to put behind him for another couple of years. Compared to some of the jest filled events their fellow carriage riders experienced over the short break their Christmas Day was rather tame.

Hermione was currently recalling the books she had received for the festive season, thanking those who had sent her gifts and explaining what a joyous time she had had. Turning his head to the side, Harry gazed out the frosted windows of the Hogwarts Express as it blazed through the countryside. Focusing out of the conversation, he contemplated what needed to be done in the coming months in order to prevent Voldemort from having an early resurrection.

He hadn't found the fabled Mirror of Erised but he couldn't help but believe that Dumbledore would have already placed the magical artifact at the end of his otherwise simplistic traps. The Philosopher's Stone was likely embedded within the mirror and Quirrell would be unable to remove it.

Or at least Harry hoped so.

On lighter notes, Harry did have a grand idea for the final prank Potter club would perform at the end of the year although it would take a substantial amount of research and delicacy. He would also have to try and make it that every member of the club contributed in someway. Last thing he wanted was for some of the members to feel left out, especially after the grandiose explosion that had been his summoned birds.

Next year he would request for some new members of the club again but last thing he wanted was for them to be drowning in members. Luna Lovegood he was determined to sign up; even though he had only met her just prior to the commencement of his fifth year the dreamy girl seemed to be lacking in friends. Hopefully this would be a way for her to feel welcome and possibly avoid some bullying.

"Are you with us Harry?" asked Neville. Slowly drawing his attention back to that of the real world, Harry found everybody looking at him.

"What I miss?"

"Did you have a good Christmas, Harry?" asked Hermione.

"Oh, yea, of course, why wouldn't I?" said Harry.

"Well you did get harassed by a reporter," said Neville.

"Rita, she was nothing," said Harry offhandedly. "It was easy to tell what she was after."

"Did you give it to her?" asked Neville.

"Pfft, no way was I going to make it easy for her," said Harry.

"Harry showed her," boasted Susan.

Harry wasn't so certain of Susan's brief description on the events, really the only thing which had helped him through the situation was knowing first hand just what it was that Rita was after. He momentarily pondered whether or not she would track him down at a later date for a follow up, perhaps this time actually using some of his quotes. Goodness knew that if she did by the time the Triwizard Tournament came about she'd almost consider the two of them best of friends.

The thought sent shivers down his spine.

"So what do you think happened with Potter Club while we were gone?" asked Hermione, changing the topic of conversation with ease. Harry merely watched as people began putting forward their thoughts and what the odds of a member of the club having gotten caught. Harry even spoke up, stating that Potter Club would have put on a wonderful display for the festive season, knowing full well that nothing of the sort would have happened.

While everybody smiled at the possibilities, some of which Harry contemplated stealing for another time, Harry smiled for a different reason as he watched the conversation in front of him and the joy the topic brought. At the end of the day, happiness was what Potter Club sought to achieve and it could be accomplished not only with impressive feats of magic but the word of mouth aftermath or presumptions which schoolchildren seemingly thrived on. Harry himself had been the centre of the rumor mill for years, something he would do his best to avoid this time round, and knew personally just how quickly information passed via word of mouth.

He wondered whether he could abuse the system down the track to his advantage.

Rejoining the conversation, Harry indulged them with another idea of what Potter Club might have accomplished as the train continued on its path towards the magical school.

...

"You're back!" exclaimed Ron as he saw Harry step into the Gryffindor common room, followed by Hermione and the rest of those who had ventured home for the Winter holidays.

"What? You think I was going to stay?" asked Harry, causing Ron to fluster a bit. "Relax will you, I'm here now and that's what matters."

"I merely hope, Ronald, that you've managed to complete your holiday homework with little trouble," said Hermione as she placed her trunk down, standing next to Harry. Harry meanwhile was watching the mild confrontation between them. While he had had a good bit of time with Ron to ensure that their friendship was heading on the right direction he was uncertain about how his two friends reacted around one another.

"I've gotten started," said Ron bashfully. "Fred and George gave me some pointers."

"I'd think cross referencing might be good then," said Harry, wondering whether the advice Ron's brothers had given him was meant to help him pass or fail.

"Well if I can beat you in a game of chess, Hermione could you look over my work for me?" suggested Ron, giving Harry an indication of the relationship between the two students.

"Best out of three," stated Hermione. "Only however if you take my trunk up to my dormitory beforehand."

"Deal," said Ron exuberantly as he gathered Hermione's belongings and started heaving them towards the stairs where the girl's dormitories were located.

"This cannot end well," said Harry casually as Ron vanished from view. Harry knew full well that Hermione was aware of the defences Hogwarts had to prevent members of the opposite gender from getting into the female dorm rooms. True to his word, roughly a dozen seconds later he watched as the steps all shifted in angle, turning the entire set of stairs into a slide. Those in the common room couldn't help but laugh as Hermione's trunk slid into view, quickly followed by a screaming Ron sliding backwards on his stomach who had been completely unprepared for Hogwarts repelling him from trying to access the witches' quarters.

He wasn't the only one screaming however.

Laughter came to abrupt halt as Lavender Brown slid down on her buttocks right towards Ron, uncertain of what had just happened and the predicament she was now in. Ron of course could only watch on in shock as Lavender rocketed closer and closer to where he was with her legs spread apart. She was doing her best to hold her robe down to keep her modesty from most of the tower but Ron had the perfect view from his position.

"Pink," he said softly before Lavender crashed into him, his head burying underneath her robe right between her legs.

Seconds ticked by as everybody did their best to process the situation. From Harry's (and most of the common room's) perspective they had watched the prank pulled by Hermione (who definitely knew what it was she was doing) turn into something that nobody could believe as Ron remained still, his head buried between Lavender's legs.

An audible thunk was heard as the stairs leading to the female dormitories sprung back to their original shape. The resounding noise snapped everybody out of their daze as Lavender scrambled to her feet and rushed up the stairs, quickly followed by several of the older female students who were determined to comfort the young girl. Ron meanwhile was launched onto his feet by Percy, the Prefect disgusted with his brother's behavior and was in the middle of a rant when Hermione turned to Harry.

"I...I...umm...I didn't..." she stuttered unable to form coherent words as the rest of the tower began to break out into either fits of laughter or began scolding those who were laughing.

"And that is why I named you the Queen of Potter Club," said Harry just soft enough for her to hear despite the ruckus.

Hermione smiled.


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

"Thank you all for attending and once more putting up with my selfish demands to hide your identity by means of voice alteration charms and a Transfigured mask. As I'm sure you still understand though, secrecy is fundamental in ensuring that we remain a success."

"Hey, it's all good. Don't worry about it."

"At least it helps with some pretty complicated spell casting."

"Alright then, firstly I hope everybody had a wonderful Christmas and all that regardless of whether you stayed behind or went home and spent time with your family. Now, onto business, already a week has come to pass since term began and already whispers are starting to spread that Potter Club has either given up, was caught, or otherwise."

"Well that's because everybody was expecting us to do something straight up."

"Exactly."

"Kinda sly by staying under the radar."

"Don't worry, the people in charge know we're still at large."

"How?"

"I sent Dumbledore a present on our behalf."

"No way."

"You're shitting me right?"

"I promise you all, he enjoyed and hated our gift at the same time."

"What did you send him? This is _The_ Dumbledore remember. Please don't tell me you sent him something for stupid?"

"I sent him socks."

"Hehe, no way."

"Not a history book or something related to alchemy?"

"Nope."

"I hate you."

"And I love you too."

"Mate, I've gotta say, that's pretty crazy."

"What if he tracks you down?"

"Hope not but still, we'll find out soon. Speaking of something similar, does anybody know Professor McGonagall's birthday?"

"I can probably find out, why?"

"I want to send her a ball of yarn that smells of catnip."

"Hahaha."

"Please tell me you're joking."

"Does all their sniggering convince you that I'm not?"

"Hmph."

"Alright, now for the last chunk of the term there are two pranks I have planned and unlike the previous ones, I will have nothing to do with these but guidance and teaching, the timing, the position, all of that will be on you guys."

"...Are you sure?"

"Wicked!"

"Well so long as you do your homework, here, take one and pass along."

"What is this?"

"These look...odd?"

"Are they some kind of rune?"

"No but we're going to be using these as practise for when we're ready to craft some runes. Before you say that you haven't contemplated taking Runes as an elective or skipped it altogether, don't worry, we're going to be skipping the theory and getting right into the practise."

"That still doesn't explain what these are?"

"They're Japanese calligraphy, Kanji to be precise."

"Kanji? Is it some kind of Japanese rune?"

"Actually, those seven in front of you are the days of the week."

"You mean that each one of these is Monday through to Sunday?"

"Yep."

"Seems awfully complicated."

"What are all these steps on the bottom of each page?"

"It's the correct stroke order and direction."

"Wait so all these lines have to be done in a certain order?"

"Just like actual runes. I could bore you with the reasoning why but instead I'll tell you this. Every day you'll write out each Kanji twenty times for the next fortnight where I will give you a set of even more complicated Kanji to work on. All of this is practise for when you install the runes for you to complete your prank. Any questions?"

"How long do we have?"

"Until you feel confident, thankfully with these Kanji you'll be able to pick up pretty quickly when something isn't quite the way it's meant to be. In this case however nothing will happen. When inscribing runes however an uneven line can have devastating effects. For example, had I screwed up a couple of lines under the Slytherin table, hypothetically speaking instead of a rainbow appearing I may have turned all those sitting down into rabbits or spiralling into a pit with no end and no hope of rescue. There is a reason why runes are some of the most dangerous magical creations out there."

"So...practice?"

"Practice."

...

"Mister Potter," said the Head of Gryffindor, garnering Harry's attention from the otherwise 'riveting' chess game he was currently indulged in. "Professor Dumbledore would like to see you."

"Ah, okay," said Harry standing up from the board.

"We'll just finish the game when you get back," said Ron, mildly annoyed by the fact the brutal battle of wits had momentarily come to a halt.

"No need, Hermione tag in," said Harry over his shoulder as he begun to follow Professor McGonagall.

"Wait, what?" said Hermione in confusion as she rose from her schoolwork (she dare not do extra curricular study in the common room of all places).

"I've got three sickles and five knuts riding on this game Hermione, don't let me down," said Harry as he exited the common room.

"I hope you were merely joking about the gambling, Mister Potter," said Minerva sternly.

"As smart as Hermione is, Professor, she is bullocks at chess, not that chess necessary reflects the intellect of the player," said Harry. "Honestly I wouldn't trust her to finish the game with my money on the line."

"Very well," said Minerva as they came to the enchanted stairwell and discovered that they would have to wait for the next set of stairs to come past in order to continue. "I take it your studies are going well."

"I'm doing about as well as I could be," said Harry, outright lying to Minerva. The latest paper he had given to her had been awarded a better than average grade only because he hadn't bothered to go all out with his knowledge, more for his own safety than anything. Last thing he wanted was to be explaining how he had come about a word or a spell that was beyond the current curriculum or intellect he was expected to have.

"I trust then that you will do us proud in the coming Quidditch game?" asked the professor. "While disappointing against the Slytherin team I predict you'll be able to bounce back and show everybody what you are capable of."

"So...Wronski Feint?"

"Without endangering your life if at all possible, where have you even heard of such a reckless maneuver?" asked McGonagall as the stairwell swung into view, connecting into place with a resounding thud.

"Put it this way, if History of Magic featured a section about Quidditch, Ron would be getting straight 'O''s," said Harry as they resumed their journey.

"Have you thought much about your future after leaving Hogwarts?" asked Minerva changing topics.

"I don't believe that I know enough of the magical world at this point to know what possible," retorted Harry.

"I believe you do," stated Professor McGonagall. "Not only from the drivel of an article that was in the paper but word is already starting to spread of how you verbally attacked the Minister of Magic by bringing up topics he wasn't aware you, or anyone for that matter, was knowledgeable of."

"Who..."

"Before you start making accusations just know that the halls in the Ministry of Magic echo something fantastic," said Minerva, answering Harry's unspoken question. As they turned the final corner Harry found himself looking at the proud statue standing guard in front of Dumbledore's office. Reaching the stone gargoyle, Minerva turned to Harry. "I'm not sure what you plan on doing in the future Harry but the last thing I want to do is go to another funeral for one of my students taken well before their time. If you tread down the path I believe you will, please, tread carefully. The password is Honeycomb Whizz."

Harry could only watch on silently as his Head of House marched away. Exhaling deeply, he ran his fingers through his hair with the realization now that there was still a chance that he could fail, that somehow everything could just be pulled out from under the rug and destroy all his hopes for the future. There was a freaking Horcrux sitting in the Room of Requirement and he hadn't even visited the room yet!

Taking in a deep breath, Harry composed himself as he realized at this moment there was still nothing he could do. Even if he were to go and collect the Horcrux he couldn't just waltz up to Dumbledore and say that it was keeping Voldemort alive. He had nothing of his own that could destroy it and Merlin forbid he do something stupid like Malfoy's goons and cast a spell he had no control over.

Shaking his head from side to side, Harry stepped up to the gargoyle and repeated the password Professor McGonagall had told him moments before. With the guardian moving to the side, Harry ascended the spiral stairwell to where Dumbledore's office was located. The brief few moments aboard the stairs however had given enough time to push all drastic thoughts of the future to the side to focus solely on the the present.

"Harry my boy, please come closer, don't be shy," said Dumbledore, ushering Harry closer to where he sat behind his desk. Trying to feign the excitement and nerves of an eleven year old, Harry walked up to where the Headmaster sat, briefly glancing over at both the Sorting Hat on the shelf and Fawkes the phoenix, perched upon its stand.

"Am I in trouble, sir?" asked Harry as he came to a stop.

"Hardly," scoffed the Hat from his place atop the shelves.

"Is there something you're not telling us, Harry, that would get you in trouble?" asked Dumbledore, lacing his fingers under his chin.

' _If only you knew,_ ' thought Harry. "No sir, I merely asked why I was here," said Harry innocently.

"You are here because I have something that belongs to you," said Dumbledore as he stood from his chair. "If you will give me a moment to retrieve it from my study. Feel free to browse around but I beg of you not to touch anything."

Harry said nothing as he turned from his stool and headed towards the stairs that lead to his private quarters. When the door closed, Harry turned his attention to the raggedy ol' hat that judged the qualities of all the students who walked through the halls for the first time.

"Talk."

"I don't know what you're inquiring about, Mister Potter," said the Sorting Hat. "At this moment in time there is nothing I could disclose to you in this office other than I will reiterate what I've said before; you would have done well in Slytherin."

This ended with the hat shuffling a bit and doing something reminiscent of a wink in Harry's direction. Harry, while mildly confused, understood that while the hat wanted to say something it couldn't for some reason. Exhaling a sigh of annoyance, Harry took the opportunity to browse the belongings of the Headmaster. Many of the items he had no clue of their origin or their purpose, essentially meaning that Albus likely had a mild fortune just casually sitting atop his desk.

"This belongs to you, as it did your father before you and his father before him," said Albus as he gracefully laid the cloak on the desk gently.

"Thank you, sir," said Harry, tempted to ask why the Professor had his hereditary cloak but decided against it. Last thing he wanted was to start giving out too much information.

"I will inform you that your father got into quite some trouble with that cloak but I trust you'll use it better than he did," said Dumbledore.

"Trouble, sir?"

"You'll find out soon enough what that cloak is capable of, for now though I ask that you return to your assignments as there are other matters I must attend to."

"By all means, sir," said Harry as he grabbed hold of his cloak and tossed it over his shoulders before cheekily smiling at Dumbledore as he completely covered himself and vanished from view. Underneath the protection of the cloak he pulled out his wand and cast a spell to muffle the sounds of his footsteps as he watched Albus' eyes widen momentarily in shock as he tried to process how Harry knew exactly what to do.

As he left the office, Harry knew that with his family's heirloom safely within his care once more that there were jobs to be done.

...

Susan really did try her best to study during History of Magic, she really did. Perhaps if the teacher wasn't dead, or if the subject was on something more recent than the Goblin Rebellions of the 16th Century. Maybe it was just the monotonous melodramatic way in which Professor Binns spoke but no matter what the reason there was no denying the fact that it was just _soooooooo_ dull.

Next to her her best friend had already decided to spend the lesson catching up on her beauty sleep, though the trail of drool dangling from her lip was not beautiful in the slightest. Hannah Abbott wasn't the only one deciding to catch up on sleep, a good portion of the rest of the class had their heads down or were spending the time researching other subjects.

Ensuring that nobody was watching on either side of her, Susan dipped her quill into her ink bottle and began to do her extra curricular work, etching completely unrecognizable symbols to anyone but those she met with in secret. It was nearing the end of the second week when she had been given the Japanese symbols and she had understood what was required of her if this Kanji was anything to go by. Every stroke of the quill was purposeful and melodic, soothing in its formula. At first she had found it aggravating how every stroke had to be done in a specific order, with her artistic ability she was more intune with going with the flow, allowing her quill to lead her to the next part of her image.

By roughly the forty seventh time she had constructed the Kanji for Thursday she found that she was actually starting to enjoy the very strict form of creativity, as much of a confusing statement as that was. Almost by the time she finished her first parchment of Kanji through the lesson, all attention snapped forward as something exploded like a firework, sending dazzling colours of blue, red, green and yellow across the classroom.

Screams of shock and awe erupted from those who were conscious both before and after the mild explosion of light and sound. Professor Binns, who looked a single shade paler than usual, felt the immediate need to dismiss everyone making all the students assume that he thought that was the signal for the class to end.

Packing her belongings into her bag, Susan paused momentarily as she found that there was already parchment amongst her gear that didn't belong to her. Trying to be as inconspicuous as possible, she took a gander at what had mysteriously entered her bag to find ten pieces of parchment, each one containing a different Kanji she had never seen before.

"How?" she said softly before realizing the simple answer to her question.

It was Potter Club.

...

"Harry, can I ask you a question?" asked Hermione as she and Harry sat at their favorite table tucked away in the corner of the library.

"Sure, what's up?" asked Harry looking up from his work.

"Well, I've been meaning to ask...you see the thing is..."

"Yes?"

"Just how are the members of Potter Club meant to contact one another?" said Hermione finally figuring out the best way to phrase her question.

"What do you mean?" asked Harry as he put down his quill.

"Well you've given us all this Kanji to work on and the end of January's coming up, meaning there's only a handful of months before the end of the term. You've asked us to take the Runes you've gathered and use it to form not one but two pranks of a large scale before we all have to go home. But you never organized a time for us to meet or a place for us to organize where we need to go in order to arrange when we're going to do this prank," said Hermione.

"I'm surprised you haven't figured it out yet," said Harry.

"What do you mean?" asked Hermione.

"I've given you guys all the tools that you need in order to get in contact with each other," said Harry who paused momentarily before sighing as he looked at the confused look on Hermione's face. "What was the first set of Kanji I gave you?"

"The days of the week," answered Hermione.

"And the next set?"

"The numbers one to ten."

"Now this set here is a touch more on the complicated side," said Harry, indicating the Kanji in front of him that he was writing up. "This set indicates our classes; Potions, Charms etc. Now, when you have all three available, what can you do?"

"So you've given us days, numbers and for the better part...location," said Hermione coming to an understanding. "You're a genius, Harry."

"So you've got to figure out how best to convey those Kanji you know for all to see and only a few will understand," said Harry as he picked up his quill once more and resumed his work. "Meanwhile there's something else you should be worried about coming round the corner."

"What?"

"Valentine's Day is next week," said Harry with his eyes glued to his work. "Reckon you're going to be fighting off the boys with your stunning good looks."

"Harry," squealed Hermione as she began to blush violently, Harry happily laughing away and dodging whatever Hermione could get her hands on and throw his way.

...

"Hey mate, can I get your advice on something?" asked Ron as he and Harry walked towards the Gryffindor common room, classes having finished for the day.

"Sure what's up?"

"Well, it's Lavender," said Ron in a hushed whisper as if afraid somebody in the empty corridor would hear him.

"What about her?"

"Well, the thing is she's not talking to me," said Ron coming to a stop.

"Since when has Lavender ever talked to you?" asked Harry looking at his friend.

"Well...never I guess..."

Resisting the urge to hit Ron over the back of the head, Harry wondered what had gotten into the youngest Weasley at the school. "So what's different from her not talking to you at the beginning of the year to not talking to you now?"

"Well, you know about the...'incident.'" said Ron making quotation marks with his fingers as if it would help Harry understand what incident Ron was talking about. Once more Harry fought the urge to smack him over the head.

"I was there, Ron."

"Well, the difference is that, now she kind of, I'm not sure, watches me, I guess?" said Ron completely unsure of himself.

"Watches you like how?"

"From around corners, down the dinner table, heck she's hiding behind a pillar down the corridor now!" Blinking a couple of times, Harry leaned over slightly to look down the way from which they had come only to see someone for a fraction of a second before they vanished. "What does it mean Harry?"

"Lavender Brown is stalking Ron...bit early for that," said Harry softly, Ron only just being able to hear what he said.

"Early, what do you mean by that?" asked Ron, surprising Harry that the red haired boy hadn't focused on the more pressing matter which was the whole stalker thing.

"I believe your attempt at diving up her skirt has made Miss Brown unsure of herself and her body much more early than many young women," answered Harry, somewhat lying but at the same time telling the truth. "Now, have you apologized to Lavender about what you did to her?"

"But it wasn't my fault? Why should I apologize?"

Harry didn't bother to fight the urge this time as he lightly smacked Ron across the head earning a satisfying yelp of pain. "Have you ever thought that perhaps, while it isn't your fault, Lavender may think that it was and as such, would like to hear you say that you're sorry."

"But why?"

Placing a hand on Ron's shoulder, Harry looked deep into Ron's eyes. "Trust me on this one mate, and now's as good a time as any." With his final message having been sent, Harry turned and returned on his journey towards the common room. Whether or not Ron would follow up on his suggestion would likely be discovered in the very near future if the romantic holiday that was Valentine's Day was anything to go by.

...

Hermione trod down the stairs with a mild spring in her step having just visited the Owlery to send off her Valentine's gifts. Unlike the letters that most owls would be delivering these ones were written in code, or more specifically Kanji. Thankfully because of the nature of the day it was a given that owls would be delivering letters and gifts throughout the day so nobody would be any wiser when someone across from them found themselves face to face with a letter dropping in front of them.

Entering the Great Hall, Hermione glanced to the side to see Susan Bones sitting at the end of the Hufflepuff table, an open piece of parchment in her hand and a concentrating look upon her face. The message that Hermione had sent was pretty basic mostly for the fact that none of them truly knew how to form a coherent sentence but rather just random symbols. 'Monday, 8, Charms Room,' had been the simplistic message she had sent and she hoped that nobody went to the classroom at eight in the morning. All of their meetings thus far had been during the evenings sop she saw no reason why anybody would misinterpret this.

Taking her seat at the Gryffindor table, Hermione started assembling herself some breakfast, doing her best to ignore the heart shaped pieces of toast laid out in front of her. Her musings however were shattered when an owl landed in front of her, a message tied to it's leg and a parcel dangling from a bit of string clasped in it's beak. For several moments Hermione did nothing but stare at the owl, completely unsure of what had just happened. Slowly she removed the message tied to the owl's leg, the feathered creature depositing the package and taking off a moment later. Unrolling the parchment she read a message almost simpler than the one she had sent out earlier.

 _Happy Valentine's Hermione._

Hermione froze, completely unsure of the situation she now found herself in. Her mind which usually raced away had now shutdown. "Are you alright Hermione?" asked someone from nearby but when they failed to get a response, they waved their hand in front of her face to no effect. Clicking of the fingers also failed to gain a response before they sighed. "I'm sorry for this."

"Ow!" said Hermione as she rubbed at her recently pinched shoulder before looking up at the culprit. "Why'd you do that Parvati?"

The Indian girl smiled as she sat down beside Hermione, once again surprising the young Gryffindor somewhat. Despite having lived together since the beginning of the school year the two of them hadn't spoken much for anything other than something related to schoolwork. "You mouth was open and you looked as if you'd just discovered a new spell, I had to get your attention somehow."

"Thanks, I guess..." said Hermione as she focused her attention once more on the small piece of parchment in her hand.

"So, you've got yourself a secret admirer," teased Parvati.

"What, no, of course not," dismissed Hermione, her cheeks starting to turn red.

"Right, because everyone here is getting gifts sent to them by people who are no more than friends," said Parvati sarcastically as she scooched closer. "C'mon, what'd they send you?"

With unsteady hands, Hermione grasped the package and slowly opened it up to reveal several items consisting of a copy of ' _Pride and Prejudice'_ a small collection of potions and a smaller box which she opened up to reveal a set of diamond earrings. "My gosh..."

"Well whoever they are, they sure know how to treat a lady," said Parvati as she picked up one of the potions and looked at the label. "Looks like these are similar to scented candles, just open them up and you can make our room smell amazing."

"This...this is a third edition copy!" said Hermione in disbelief as she looked at the publication date of the Jane Austen novel.

"And of course she focuses on the book first," said Parvati haphazardly. "Face it Hermione, someone's got a crush on you."

Those words caused Hermione's brain to shut down once more causing young Miss Patil to giggle before attempting to bring the bushy haired witch back to the world of the living.


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

...

Harry sat in Defence class, rhythmically tapping his fingers on the table as he paid no attention to the mindless dribble that constituted for words coming out of Professor Quirrell's mouth. While most of the students did their best to decipher whatever language the stuttering Professor was saying as he scribbled away on his chalkboard the importance of something mundane and pointless in the long run. For all Harry knew, Quirrell could have been explaining a new spell he had developed that had the power to make it that if you were hit by an Unforgivable Curse you'd turn into a kitten instead of whatever dastardly deed was attempted but Harry paid it no attention.

"M-Mister P-P-Potter, is there s-some reason as to why you aren't t-t-t-taking notes?" asked the teacher seemingly having noticed that Harry was slacking off in class.

A dozen crude and humiliating retorts scrolled through Harry's mind before he decided to simply play the oh-so-fun card that every student knew like the back of their hand. "I'm just not feeling that well sir," he said opting to clutch at his stomach and feign illness.

"D-D-Dreadful, off t-t-t-to see M-M-Madam P-P-Pomfrey now," declared Professor Quirrell, Harry more than happy to immediately flee from the painful vocal act that the possessed teacher was putting on. Gathering his belongings, Harry quickly made his way out of the classroom, still with one hand on his stomach in order to ensure that his act was believed.

Once he was out of the hallway, Harry arched his back with a satisfying pop whilst stretching his shoulders above his head, wondering how best to abuse the time he had purchased himself. There really wasn't much more he could do for Potter Club this year, having already left everything within the capable hands of Hermione, including the runes which would be used whenever they saw fit. Considering it was the start of March though they didn't have much time before their deadline came screaming up on them. Also knowing Hermione almost better than she did, she would be desperate to get perfect results on all of her exams despite the fact they basically meant nothing in the long run.

Given that train of thought, Harry figured that the first prank would be crafted before the end of the month. If that was indeed the case then he couldn't wait.

It also meant it was creeping closer to his time when he'd have to tackle Voldemort for the second time (at least in this timeline, he'd lost track of the total number). Thankfully this time round he was fairly confident that he'd be able to tackle the challenges by himself and not have to drag Ron and Hermione into harm's way. Only one he would potentially have trouble with would be chasing the key while being attacked but if Quirrell could do it then by all means so could he.

"'Arry me boy, what you doin' out of class?" asked Hagrid, startling the child a quarter his size.

"Oh Hagrid, I didn't see you there," said Harry as he did his best to recover from his inner dilemma.

"That don't answer my question," said Hagrid sternly. "Young boys like yourself should be studying at this time o' year."

"I wasn't feeling too well, so I decided to get some fresh air," said Harry following on from his previous lie.

"Well in that case, why don't you come down to my hut, I've got something interestin' to show ya," said Hagrid with a devilish smile. "Care though cause it's top secret, nobody can know 'bout it."

Harry blinked a handful of times before realizing exactly what Hagrid was referring to. Silently he nodded before Hagrid started down the nearby path leading towards his hut, Harry meanwhile contemplating all the ways in which this was better than the previous time around. Most importantly would be the fact that they wouldn't go parading about the forest in the middle of the night chasing something that was hunting unicorns. Whoever thought that was a smart idea for first years to be punished was an idiot. No student should be up after curfew, no student should step foot into the Forbidden Forest, no student should willingly track down something extremely dangerous, someone really forgot what rules they were trying to uphold. Sure, the last one wasn't a rule per say but considering the amount of crap that went on in the school it should have been.

"Now, yer to tell nobody what you see in 'ere, I'm trustin' you 'Arry," said Hagrid as he grasped the handle leading into his hut. Opening the door, Harry followed the gentle half-giant inside the cozy hut and made himself comfortable.

"So what's the secret?" asked Harry trying to sound as inquizitive as he could.

"This over 'ere," said Hagrid as he walked over to the fireplace where the large brown egg sat in a bowl roasting over an open fire.

"What is it?" asked Harry knowing exactly what it was.

"This my friend, is a dragon egg, I won it from a stranger I met down the pub, seemed awful keen to get rid of it," said Hagrid.

"Could that be because it's illegal to own a dragon without a permit?" offered Harry.

"Illegal?"

"Hagrid, most dragons grow up in colonies and those that are actually in captivity are done so by professional trainers or smugglers, if you're not a professional trainer Hagrid, what does that make you?"

"But I'm no smuggler!"

"And if your hut was to burn down and the Ministry were to inquire what happened only to learn that a baby dragon decided to destroy your house, what's going to happen to you when they discover you don't have a permit nor are you a professional trainer?"

"Well...I...uhh, ya see Dumbledore..."

"Is bound by the same rules that you and I are governed by," reasoned Harry. "If you want my advice on this, let Dumbledore know about what you have and ask whether or not he knows somebody who can keep him."

"You know Harry, that's a mighty fine idea, last thing I need is to get into any sorts a trouble. Dumbledore's a great man, I'm sure he'll know just what to do," beamed Hagrid.

...

"Or it could turn out that Dumbledore owns a permit himself," said Harry in disbelief to nobody in particular as he watched the scene play out in front of him as Dumbledore put all Hagrid's worries at ease. Albus was able to explain to the Half-Giant that he would be able to look after the egg and the hatchling for a little while as he got in contact with somebody who would be able to take proper care of him. He was a man with many contacts after all, many of which would be more than happy to take care of a pubescent dragon.

It wasn't too long into their discussion that the majestic phoenix which resided in Albus' study glided across the room and landed next to the egg, nuzzling against it as if in understanding that the egg required heat more than anything else. Harry couldn't help but notice that the temperature in the room began to swelter, the phoenix determined to ensure that the egg was in a safe environment. "It would seem as if your pet will soon emerge," analyzed Albus.

"I thought it wouldn' be anytime soon," said Hagrid in astonishment.

"A phoenix's flames can create many disturbances in both situations of death, and in this case, life," said Dumbledore. "This instance has likely never been recorded in history nor would anybody believe me were I to explain it in detail without delivering them proof of the event. I however, would like to merely sit back and witness the miracle of birth."

Harry pondered over the question of whether or not hatching technically classified as birth since the mother had already technically given birth when laying her eggs when he heard the clearing of a throat behind him. Looking up on the shelf, Harry could see the Sorting Hat shuffling it's way over the stand where it was perched before falling several feet before being caught by Harry who looked over his shoulder momentarily before placing the animate object on his head.

" _I pondered when we'd get a chance to talk once more."_

" _Well trust me when I say that it isn't that easy getting away."_

" _I can tell. Though what I am seeing is much more than what I ever could have expected would come to pass. You have...no I should say that you 'will' have a knack for getting into trouble."_

" _Is this why you wanted to speak with me?"_

" _Yes, the moment I placed you in Gryffindor I suddenly found myself subjugated to images and memories not of this timeline. Fear not...well I guess I can't technically call you child. Anyways, your secret will be safe with me, the founders ensured that no information that was shared between myself and a student could be used by anybody else, faculty or otherwise."_

" _That's reassuring."_

" _Indeed, I however needed to see this for myself, the world in which you have returned from is not one that I particularly enjoy witnessing but I knew that I had to see it. Children training for war was something you did in the past, do you plan on doing this again this time round?"_

" _I hope to avoid it if at all possible...shouldn't Dumbledore have spotted us by now?"_

" _Harry, you don't merely think that being a hat is all I am good for now?"_

" _What do you mean?"_

" _I am a creation of the founders, as old as Hogwarts itself, give an old man some credit. You've seen your fair share in your lifetime, care to try and figure this one out?"_

" _...temporal distortion of time and space?"_

" _That is actually a lot closer to the truth than you might think but nowhere near as complex. The human mind is capable of reaching tremendous speeds when put to good use and you are able to solve complex equations in a matter of seconds as a result, excuse my terrible example. I imagine even yourself though find it impossible for the thoughts that pass through your head can be put down on paper at an identical pace."_

" _So you're saying that because we are conversing through my mind at a pace much faster than that of the 'real world,' per say, we are actually speaking at a time much swifter than that in where Dumbledore exists."_

" _Again, overly complicated but the point is there. As we are conversing directly in your mind we are doing so at nearly thrice the speed were we to speak in a way in which we would be overheard."_

" _So our time is not unlimited then."_

" _It is not but as the egg just hatched we have ourselves a touch more time on our hands before you must return me to my prior position."_

" _...you do know I can't reach that high?"_

" _...we'll get to that later, now I must know how I can be of some assistance in the future you wish to create."_

" _Your help?"_

" _I can see the nerves in your heart Harry, despite the bravado you put on with everything, including this amusing club you have fun hosting, you are afraid that something may go wrong. It would be wrong of me to say that there was no chance of such a thing happening. The future however is already changed beyond your comprehension. Look at that dragon being born now. In your previous timeline he wasn't born for another seven weeks! If you break it down you realize that Hagrid had had that egg for such a long time, which also meant that the one he got the egg from was given the information from him seven weeks prior to your understanding. You have a very set plan in play Harry and I will happily play a part in it as I do not wish to see those whose crown's I have rest upon slaughtered by a madman. It is why I request of you, take me away tonight and we shall destroy the Horcrux resting within Hogwarts!"_

Harry took the Sorting Hat off his head and looked at the enchanted item in his hands. It had seen the future from his eyes, most likely moments before it had been taken off his head when he had been sorted into Gryffindor it had seen that Harry wasn't the same child whom had refused to be sorted into Slytherin. It had seen a glimpse of it then and now having sat atop his head now it knew all that Harry knew.

That didn't mean that it felt the way Harry felt.

"Next semester," said Harry in as calm a voice as he could muster. "All I want you to do is think up a better song and sort students accordingly. It will matter not; I will tear the house system to the ground."

...

Harry waited patiently amongst the stone pillars illuminated only by the fire that had danced forth magically when he had entered the corridor. For the last week the conversation he had had with the Sorting Hat had weighed heavily on his mind and it was clear that above all else that the founders had put into the sentient object was a desire to protect the children within Hogwarts. Harry had to find some manner of happiness in knowing that the four powerful wizards and witches that had put Hogwarts together had done so for the betterment of the community.

And now he was going to work on destroying part of the core that was fundamental in the competitive nature of the school. He was going to unite all four houses under his banner; Potter Club's banner.

It was why he now waited patiently on the forbidden Third Floor, constantly checking the Map the Marauders had made many decades earlier for any trace of a Professor heading in his general direction. He did have a backup plan if he found himself cornered but last thing he needed was to run into Fluffy right now, as entertaining as that would be.

Harry had spent the past week figuring out who best to recruit knowing full well that the last person he needed to trust was someone whom would be caught in the nest of vipers. Harry wasn't a fool, he had avoided inducting somebody from Slytherin into Potter Club because he couldn't quite remember whose family pledged itself at the end of the day to Lord Shithead.

Malfoy and his cronies were out of the picture as soon as he had started constructing this idea, as well as Theodore Nott. Blaise Zabini was an uncertainty and Harry wasn't quite keen to target somebody older. Hence he had been left with the girls his own age, none of which he had really done much with over the course of his lifetime yet to come.

From what he recalled, Pansy Parkinson was, or at least would be, involved with Draco at some point, hence ruling her out of contention. That left him three options, none of which he had ever truly associated with. So, during an explosion in Potions class which had caused a perfect distraction, he made his decision and had planted the note requesting they come today.

Now he just had to wait and see if they would show.

Thankfully he would only have to be waiting for a short while before he spotted their shadows dancing on the ground and he cast the necessary spells over himself to hide his identity. It was then however he realized that his intended recruit wasn't alone and he suddenly wondered whether or not she could be trustworthy at all.

"You know we shouldn't be here."

"Of course I know that, but I mean it's perfect for a meeting."

"You still haven't told me just who we're meeting yet."

Harry seemed to understand the situation a bit more at that moment and pondered if he could use it to his advantage. Stepping out of the shadows he revealed himself at the end of the hall, an ominous figure standing at the end of their destination.

"She's meeting me."

He watched with amusement as both the first year students froze in place, clearly intimidated by what they saw. It was also amusing as one of them raised up their wands in defence though even with the distance between them he could see her hand shaking. He took deliberate steps forward at an even pace, not enough speed to downright frighten them but at the same time they were intimidated all the same.

"Stop, I'm warning you."

Harry didn't stop.

"I will curse you."

Harry doubted she knew any dangerous curses.

"I swear, I will."

Harry finally came to a stop only a couple of feet from where they were standing, the wand almost touching his chest. "If you were going to curse me you would have done so while you had the advantage of distance."

"Seriously Daphne, who is this guy!"

"There is no need to yell, Tracey Davis."

"You...know who I am? But that doesn't tell me who you are."

"This guy's in Potter Club."

"Are you for real? Is she for real?"

"She is correct...to a degree."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm not a simple participate of Potter Club, I am Potter Club."

"You run the...umm...I don't know what to say."

"This is so much better than what I expected."

"Nobody else knows that this event is happening, none of the other members of Potter Club are aware of your existence here today."

"This is so exciting."

"Now however I am tempted to merely walk away, you have threatened every possible chance to get into Potter Club."

"What! Why?"

"I believe the message I left for you clearly stated that you were meant to come 'alone' Daphne, or was my writing undecipherable?"

"Umm...well...the thing you see is...umm..."

"Daphne was scared."

"What, no I wasn't! I mean, I may have been, just a little bit...sorry?"

"The two of you have left me in a bit of a predicament as a result of your actions and I have to take this into careful deliberation. I will inform you now that Potter Club currently contains members of all houses...bar Slytherin. Daphne, you were to be the first Slytherin in Potter Club."

"I can walk away and pretend this never happened, would that be okay?"

"An admirable gesture, but one that will not be needed."

"I'm so sorry I came, Daphne, you could have gotten in Potter Club which would have been like the coolest thing ever and you should've known better than to ask me to come and you should have been brave and tackled this by yourself because..."

"Tracey, breathe!"

"That was...impressive. Do you do that often?"

"Yea, sometimes I just get caught up in the moment...sorry."

"All good, now, back to the topic at hand. There are two choices I can make here and none of what I say leaves this hallway regardless, understand?"

"Yes!"

"Of course, I wouldn't have come otherwise."

"Alright then, these are your instructions, follow them to the letter."

"What is this?"

"Your mission and also your chance of becoming Potter Club members. For having brought someone along, Daphne, the two of you will have to do both this assignment and one more to be classified as members of Potter Club. Failure to comply will result in your final chance being snuffed out forever."

"You don't mean forever forever...right?"

"Forever."

"What if we choose not to? I mean we could just leave now and tell the first Professor we come along that Potter Club tried to recruit us."

"Remember, I am Potter Club, it would not be wise to make me angry."

"Daph, I say we do as he says."

"I'm starting to get that idea, so what's the mission then?"

"Open it."

"Alright then, hmm, you're not a Prefect are you?"

"I think being the leader of Potter Club would contradict with my responsibilites just a touch."

"Then how did you get this password?"

"Trade secret."

"Wait, you want us to get all of them without making it sound suspicious, remember, we are in Slytherin house, it's difficult enough talking to people in our own house let alone someone in Gryffindor per say."

"No mission is a simple one, each of us takes risks, hence why we hide our face, our voice and even as far as our magic. We don't want to be paraded around like some kind of hero, we're doing what we do simply for the fun of doing it and trying not to get caught in the process. Now you two have to figure out how best to go about this. Do you send invites by owl? Do you try and cause a distraction and place the invite without getting caught? Or are you going to do something that takes me by surprise? I will organize everything else but it's up to you to make sure they get there. If I get word that you've been caught...well then, we'll just have to see won't we."

"Okay, well when will our next assignment be?"

"The start of next semester I will contact you by owl on the third day of classes."

"That's oddly specific."

"Provided this goes according to plan. Oh! Before I forget there's one more thing I should mention."

"And that is?"

"Your time limit, this needs to be completed by the end of the weekend."

"The what?"

"You've got 96 hours."

"WHAT!"

...

 **Decided to post this only two hours from when I grow one year older. Happy birthday to me, I hope this chapter serves as a good present to you. Hope you enjoyed.**


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

 **Quick note before we start the chapter, I make mention of 'all' first year female students but in all honesty I may have forgotten a handful here and there and when I tired to find references I couldn't tell if they were canon or not. I apologize if I've left out some characters but these will be the only ones of this demographic in this story. Again, I apologize if I left people out.**

 **...**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

 **...**

Hermione was more than a little skeptical as she reread the note in front of her. She had not been expecting an owl to land in front of her by any means, let alone the message it delivered. The question as to why didn't Harry give her the message directly came to mind, but she quickly dismissed it, realizing that Harry hadn't been the one to send it.

With sudden realization smacking her in the face, she looked over the invite, once more wondering whether or not this was a prank pulled by the twins. Then again, though they knew who she was within the group so they may have decided to embark on this little mission without giving away their game plan. Or so she pondered. She couldn't help but question whether or not this may have been a fake; somebody pretending to be a part of Potter Club and was using the name to trick her.

The greatest form of flattery was imitation after all. If this was the case, was the prank they wished to pull malicious in nature or playful?

"Whatcha reading?" asked Lavender playfully as she plopped herself on Hermione's bed, startling the brow- haired witch.

"Nothing," Hermione said quickly only to cause her opponent to allow a cheeky grin to overcome her features.

"Nothing 'ey, then you wouldn't mind showing me what it is," said Lavender as she reached for the parchment only for Hermione to pull away. This of course only served to egg Lavender on causing Miss Parvati to enter female dormitories to find Hermione and Lavender in something reminiscent of a game of cat and mouse. With a sigh she brought out her wand and casted one of the few charms spells they had been taught this year, causing the paper Hermione was holding on to to float away from her grip and out of reach.

"HEY!"

"Now, now, play nice you two," Parvati scolded with a smile on her face as the parchment she was controlling floated over to where she stood. Dropping her spell, she skillfully plucked the falling parchment out of the air before reading the contents, Lavender holding Hermione back. "So, you got invited as well."

"...excuse me?" said Hermione as she stopped struggling in Lavender's grasp.

"Wait, you mean Granger got an invite as well," said Lavender, releasing her target.

"Seems so," said Parvati as she handed the parchment back to Hermione. "You are going, right?"

"Well...I guess so," said Hermione slowly. "But I mean this is from Potter Club, what if it's not what we think it is?"

"They've never done anything to hurt anyone, I don't see why they'd start now," said Lavender. "Plus I mean it'd be pretty pointless for them to simply target all of the Gryffindor first years for no particular reason."

"Anyways, apparently we're not the only ones who got an invite, Padma told me earlier that she and the rest of the Ravenclaw first year girls are going," said Parvati.

"Which likely means that both the Hufflepuffs and Slytherins are invited as well," deduced Hermione as she took a seat at the foot of her bed.

"Why are you so sure?" asked Lavender putting her hands on her hips.

"Outside of classes, when do we actually interact with people outside of our own houses?" asked Hermione rhetorically. She knew that Parvati occasionally hung with the Ravenclaw students when catching up with her sister but other than that she was relatively sure there was minimal contact with anyone. "This is all designed for us to just spend some time getting to know people in other houses, a communal get together."

"Well it does sound fun, especially if they're not kidding about this password and location," said Lavender.

"So...shall we be on our way?"

...

Much like Hermione, Susan had been quite skeptical about the invite that she had received. However Hannah had been quite adamant that the two of them not miss out on this opportunity. This was how the two of them were trying to look as inconspicuous as possible, making their way to the fifth floor where their invite had told them to go.

They politely greeted those they came across before they eventually reached their destination. "Bubble bath bomb," said Hannah, the password causing the door to swing open and grant them entry. They weren't sure what to expect but somehow the giant banner hanging over the ridiculously sized bathtub with the words "Potter Club Welcomes You" seemed oddly fitting.

"Susan, Hannah!" shouted Lavender from inside the bathtub, waving her hand back and forth causing aqua blue water to splash around her and pop some of the thick pink bubbles which glided atop the surface.

"Hey Lavender," said Susan as she and Hannah got closer to the edge of the bathtub. Over in one corner of the tub Lisa Turpin and Mandy Brocklehurst from Ravenclaw were experimenting with one of the dozens of taps lining the edge of the bathtub. Near where Lavender was the two Hufflepuff girls could see both the Patil twins and Hermione Granger, the Indian descendant students currently trying to tame Hermione's hair to mixed success.

"Don't be shy, jump right in," said Lavender waving them in.

"What is this place?" asked Hannah looking over to a pane glass window showing a mermaid combing her hair.

"That was quite the debate earlier but I think we've all concluded that this is the Prefect's Bathroom," said Lavender with a cheeky swim as she waded her way over to where Hannah and Susan were undressing.

"Prefect's Bathroom! Should we be here?" asked Susan, feigning worry. If they were here because Potter Club told them to, rules be damned.

"Who cares," declared Hannah as she stripped off her robes to reveal her bathing suit. Susan took a moment to look at her feet before mirroring her friend's actions, the two of them entering the bath and finding the water to be as perfect temperature as possible. "This is sooo good!"

"What do all those taps do?" asked Susan.

"We've tried about twenty," said Lavender. "Half the stuff that's come out so far we don't even know what they do."

"This one's shampoo!" declared Lisa.

"Excellent," stated Padma as she started making her way over to the flowing tap and collecting a handful of shampoo to help in her assault against Hermione's hair.

"So, anybody else want to become Prefect because of this place?" asked Susan, Mandy and Hannah quickly putting their hands up. "No surprises there." This in turn earned her a splash in the face from Hannah who quickly dove under the water to avoid the retaliation. Of course, this was only the beginning as their little squabble quickly spreading at a rapid rate to which the point where everybody was dragged into it. Squeals and screams seemingly echoed through the room.

An incredibly loud clearing of the throat brought an end to the shenanigans as the first year students turned towards the entrance to find that they now had more company. "I was under the impression that this was to be a civilized meeting, clearly I was mistaken," said Pansy Parkinson, her arms crossed over her chest.

"I was uniformed that we were required to behave in a manner befitting of your outstanding upbringing," retorted Susan, everything seemingly becoming increasingly serious. The joyous mood that had been evident only seconds before had been shattered by the arrival of the four Slytherin girls. "By all means, in such a luxurious area what manner of activity would be befitting of someone of your stature."

"I'm sure one of the Muggleborns would be more than honoured to wash my hair," declared Pansy. Before anybody in the water could react to the hurtful comment however Daphne had taken matters into her own hands, getting behind Pansy and pushing her forward and into the water whilst still fully dressed. As Pansy struggled to regain her bearings, Daphne quickly took off her over garments before leaping into the water and continuing her assault on Pansy.

"What are..." was all Pansy got out before her head was shoved underwater. Several seconds passed before her head was allowed to inhale sweet oxygen for only a split second before she was dunked beneath the water again. A handful of seconds passed once more before she resurfaced, breathing deeply. Turning around, she found the culprit glaring menacingly at her. "The hell is your problem! You could have killed me!"

"First off, if your lung capacity is restricted to two seconds then I feel sorry for you," said Daphne. "More importantly, this was perhaps our one chance to actually interact with people our own age and not be the slimy snakes that everyone in the school thinks we are. Well congratulations Pansy, you fit the stereotype freaking perfectly."

"You know what, have your stupid get together, see if I care!" shouted Pansy as she made her way to the edge of the bath and got out, not even bothering to look back at everyone as she stormed out.

"Sorry about her," apologized Tracy. "Much like Draco she thinks just because of her heritage that others are beneath her."

"We've tried breaking her out of that trend but it's integrated into her system," said Millicent as she descended into the bath. "She'd need something drastic to happen to her in order to make her see any differently."

...

Pansy slowly came to, her vision blurry as she blinked her eyes several times trying to garner her surroundings. Last thing she remembered was having stamped away from the Prefect Bathroom leaving a trail of water behind her. Now though she was here, wherever here was.

She was sitting upright and she would continue to do so for the foreseeable future as her arms had been tied through the gaps in her chair, thick rope ensuring that she wouldn't be moving any time soon. Gritting her teeth, her eyes darted around the room and she screamed when she saw what she was sharing the room.

Or at least she tried to scream, but thankfully the person who had held her captive had opted to cast a silencing charm on her having likely guessed what her reaction was going to be. A giant three headed dog was quietly snoozing away and she feared just what her terrified plea for help may have done.

It was around then however that she noticed something else happening within the room. Music. A soulful jazz like harmony being played out on a piano and when she looked to the far end of the room she discovered her supposed captor playing a merry tune without a care in the world. Looking over his shoulder, he could see that Pansy had awoken from her slumber and stepped away from the piano, a quick flick of their wand ensured that the piano remained playing on autopilot.

"Before I take the Silencing Charm off of you," said the man as he strode closer, power resonating with every step, "I just want you to know that while Fluffy over here may fall asleep to the sound of music if we are too loud we may just wake him up and let me tell you, he's not the best playmate. So, stay calm and allow us to speak like respectable members of civilization and I may not feed you to him."

Pansy swallowed nervously as Harry undid the spell he had cast. He could see in her eyes that Pansy didn't recognise him and didn't know of anybody with the features or voice he currently possessed. "Who are you?" she asked hesitantly, stealing glances over towards Fluffy in the meantime.

"I believe a lady of your standing introduces herself before asking someone else of their name," said Harry as he conjured a chair and sat opposite Pansy. There was a little twinkle in her eye as she saw the magic before her, knowing full well that inanimate conjuration was an advanced spell she wouldn't learn for several years.

Clearing her throat, Pansy sat upright as if trying to show off an air of superiority, something that really didn't fit the mood of the situation. "I am Pansy Parkinson, heiress of..."

"Stop," commanded Harry as he took a seat.

"What? You asked me who I was!"

"And you answered that you were Pansy Parkinson, I don't need to hear about the riches you were born into or for how many years your family has been 'pure.' You gave me your name, that's all I needed."

"Well then, to return to the beginning of this conversation, who are you?" asked Pansy once more.

"Not telling," said Harry cheekily garnering a look of frustration from Pansy. To calm her down, Harry merely pointed towards Fluffy which seemed to sedate Pansy's mood slightly. "All you need to know is that I organized that little shindig in the Prefect Bathroom that you decided you were too good for."

"You're... part of Potter Club?"

"Even better, I created Potter Club; but come now, we're not here to discuss me, we're here to talk about you," said Harry.

"Me?" said Pansy, her aura slowly fading away as she realized just who she was speaking to.

"Yes, you and more importantly, what you just walked away from."

"They were acting like children, I had no desire to associate myself with them," huffed Pansy.

"And it is that attitude which will make life terrible for you at Hogwarts and beyond," said Harry. "At the moment, every other girl in your year is currently bonding together and potentially creating friendships that will last well beyond school. Yet for whatever reason, you've left them behind and chosen to spend the afternoon alone."

"They were acting like children!" scoffed Pansy.

"Perhaps because they are children," said Harry with a shrug of his shoulders. "I see nothing wrong with people acting their age. Do you believe that it's appropriate for people to act older than what they actually are?" Pansy bit at the inside of her lip knowing full well that Harry was trying to trap her in her own words and anything that she said at the moment would be used against her. "Well at least you're not going to take my bait," said Harry with a light chuckle. "My point though is still valid. A couple years from now Susan Bones may host a birthday party and all the girls from Slytherin bar yourself are invited. You may not think much about these sort of occasions now but they can have dramatic impact for your future life."

Pansy still said nothing but Harry could tell that she had been drawn back down to Earth and vanished the ropes that had bound her. "Thanks," she said weakly as she rubbed at her wrists.

"Now, outside this door there is a case of Butterbeer, don't ask me how I got it, and if you're going to go and try and establish something reminiscent of a connection with your peers it may help break the ice. At the end of the day though you need to be honest not only to the girls, but to yourself as well," said Harry as he stood up, the chair he had created vanishing.

"Myself?"

"At the end of your schooling there are two roles I can see you portraying at the moment, both with pros and cons," said Harry. "If you continue down the path you're on, with your head held higher than most Quidditch players, you'll try and stamp your authority on all those beneath you whether you are right or wrong. At the end of that path you have people that smile to your face while scowling at your back and will be all alone once Hogwarts is over. Alternatively, you can go back up to the bathroom and make some friends that at the end of the day will have your back without the threats, bribes or whatever other tedious methods you were potentially contemplating. The decision is yours."

...

"So your parents are, what did you call them, Dintasts, what do they do then?" asked Tracy, the group of girls having long since concluded their futile water battle in exchange for turning up the temperature of the water and just getting the chance to know one another better.

"Dentists," corrected Hermione. "Simply put, their job is to operate on people's teeth. Fixing cavities, general cleaning so on so forth."

"Wait, so they actually stick their fingers...in people's mouths?" said Hannah which quickly resulted in a resounding serenade of 'eeewww' from all present but Hermione who merely shook her head in shame.

"They wear gloves," she said trying to defend her parents practise to little success. "Alright then...Susan, what do your parents do?" Immediately Hermione understood she had said the wrong thing as Hannah's eyes widened in shock and Susan looked as if she wished to disappear right there and then. "I'm not sure what I said, but I'm sorry..."

"Wow, I leave for not even thirty minutes and already Granger's got her foot in her mouth," said someone from outside the water causing everybody inside to turn their attention to the edge of the pool to see Pansy standing there carrying a case of Butterbeer. Thankfully with the distraction nobody was looking at Susan any more who was relieved that she hadn't had to explain her lack of an answer to Hermione.

"Where'd you get the Butterbeer?" asked Millicent.

"Doesn't matter, okay," huffed Pansy before taking in a deep breath to calm herself down. "Look, I know I may have said some things before that were...inappropriate and I guess I wanted to...apologize for my behaviour."

All eyes shifted to Hermione, who had been the target of Pansy's venomous words prior, to see her reaction. Much like Pansy she took an extra few seconds to compose herself and her response. "Apology accepted."

Her words were met with a round of cheers before Pansy was welcomed into the water and the lot of them shared in the beverages she had bought. By the time they got out, none of them could say that there were any visible animosities between them. All in all, they agreed they had a good time.

Daphne's screams in the morning however told a different story. Turned out all of the girls who had snuck into the Prefects Bathroom discovered that Potter Club didn't do things by half and had ensured that all of them remember the time they had spent together.

...

"So," started Professor McGonagall as she looked at the group of young girls in front of her, all of them clearly ashamed by their new fashion choice. "I take it this isn't simply a trend the twelve of you are trying to bring in."

Tracy let out a small giggle which was quickly stifled from an elbow to the midriff by Pansy who was clearly not enjoying the situation. "We have been targeted by Potter Club," Pansy said honestly.

"Is that so," mused Minerva. "Is there any reason why the lot of you would be targeted by the notorious Potter Club or was there something else at play." When nobody spoke up she assumed it was the latter. "If nobody has anything to say then I'm going to have to assign a detention to each of you for withholding valuable information from a member of the faculty."

Nervous glances were shared between everyone (most of which still were shocked at the appearances which befell their eyes) before Hermione opted to tell all. "We all got an invite for a get together, arranged by Potter Club," she said.

"And you didn't think that was something worth informing a teacher about?"

"Well, I mean it's Potter Club, they've only done amazing things," said Hannah.

"Yea, so why would we be worried?" said Padma.

"So then, where did this invite tell you to go?" asked Minerva.

"Fifth floor, fourth door to the left of Boris the ummm..." said Tracy having forgotten the last bit of detail.

"Bewildered," finished Daphne.

"Thank you."

"I see, so the lot of you spent some manner of time yesterday frolicking around the Prefect Bathroom," deduced Minerva. "If I was to make an assumption I would assume there was either a slow acting potion or a delayed Glamour Charm of some variety that caused this...'unfortunate' side effect of your get together. Normally you would receive suitable punished for entering an area that you were not permitted, however I think that the 'Risk vs Reward' strategy that Potter Club apparently put into place for this situation is punishment enough in it's own right. Whether your appearances will return to normal or not is yet to be seen, however I forbid the lot of you from altering it in any way until the end of next week."

"You mean we have to look like this until the end of next week!" Pansy almost screamed in frustration.

"Unless you have a more suitable idea for your own punishment, I believe a little public humiliation should suit it's purpose," said Minerva. "If that is all ladies, I wish you well and we will meet again soon to sort out your little problem."

With her final words spoken, Minerva strode away, now allowing the smile she had been desperately trying to hide spread across her lips. She was by no means upset by Potter Club's actions, though how they had gotten access to the Prefect Bathroom's password was a touch unsettling. While some of the faculty were against the actions caused by the unsanctioned club she was not part of them and actually enjoyed the pranks that they pulled. She was glad that they weren't targeting a single person or a single house as that would show some of the bias which had plagued this school for so long.

Now though she had to report this to Professor Dumbledore, the Headmaster having requested that any incident regarding Potter Club be brought before him immediately. She believed that this wasn't for nefarious purposes but rather so he could get a bit of entertainment in the day in an otherwise repetitive job.

"This sucks!" shouted Pansy burying her face in her hands.

"Well at least it's all of us," said Millicent.

"Like that's meant to make me feel better!"

"Would you rather it only have happened to you?" asked Tracy, silencing Pansy.

"Well, there's no point keeping holed up in here," said Lisa as she made her way towards the door. "What do you reckon people will say when they see us?"

"Well when we tell them that Potter Club did this they'll probably laugh, provided they're not already laughing," said Parvati.

"No time like the present," said Susan, the rest of them in agreeance (Pansy's being a little more hesitant than the rest) as they exited the classroom and headed towards the Great Hall for breakfast, all of them slightly less self conscious about the pink hair that all of them now sported.

...

 **Hope you enjoyed**


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

 **...**

Hermione looked at her hair in the mirror, the pink monstrosity still in effect despite the fact that the allotted time frame had passed. She, along with several of the other girls, had opted to retain their current hair colour. When asked why she was doing so, Hermione simply shrugged and said that there was nothing wrong with having pink hair. Arguably the fashion statement had had an effect on her psyche but she knew that it wouldn't remain this way forever.

Throughout the first couple of days when they had accepted their 'punishment' from Professor McGonagall they had been badgered with questions, the most common one asking what had happened. While all of the girls had answered differently it mainly focused around the one thing; Potter Club had laid out the trap and they had fallen for it. Tracy had gone on to state that she would fall in the trap again and again. She was also the one to inform all of them that the password for the Prefect's Bathroom had changed.

She and Hannah had been most distraught at that.

With her appearance ready for the day, Hermione focused her attention onto more important matters. The end of term was coming up fast, which meant of course that there were final tests to prepare for. These however were not what her mind was on, constant studying had ensured that she was more than ready once these tests were upon her.

Hermione was contemplating her time frame for Potter Club. There were only six weeks until she'd have to board the Hogwarts Express to return home (by then she'd have definitely had her hair changed back to normal, heavens forbid what her mother would say). This of course meant that they only had five weeks and six days to perform Potter Club's finale before the end of the school term.

Harry had given them the runes when last they had had a joint meeting and explained the properties of all of them and what to watch out for. His words of caution had ensured that all of them had practiced the runes several times over. And just like that he had left the meeting, not wanting to interrupt them at all with their planning.

One of the pranks was easy to predict where best to use it, it would also be the one that provided the most danger. The time frame would be quite limited and they would have to cover a wide amount of space in order to ensure that it didn't fail on them or only perform half as well as expected. The plan for that one had already been set in motion with two of the club members, who despite being disguised Hermione could tell were Fred and George, volunteering to run distraction while everyone else did all the dirty work. Hermione somehow felt more comfortable with that.

The second prank had caused them to be stumped somewhat and had yet to construct a solid plan. They had argued about locations, allotted space, time frames, anything and everything they could think of. Hermione eventually just told them to come back during the next meeting with their plan written down and when everybody was acting more rationally they could come to a conclusion.

She had yet to come up with a solid plan.

Sighing, Hermione gathered her belongings for the class ahead. "What time is it?" came Lavender's voice, the girl buried beneath her blankets. For Hermione it was understandable, the girl always struggled to rise in time after Astronomy classes.

"We've roughly got an hour before the game starts," said Hermione as she finished packing her satchel for the day.

"Wake me up in ten then," said Lavender as she put her head under her pillow.

"Don't worry Hermione, I've got this one," said Parvati, the young witch now recognizable from her sister as she had opted to keep her hair the distinguishable pink while Padma had reverted back to her original colour.

Hermione smiled as she hoisted her satchel over her shoulder and made her way towards the Common Room. At the start of the year she had struggled to get along with Lavender and Parvati, the two girls seemingly having become best friends straight away and anything she tried to do otherwise resulted in her feeling like a third wheel. It didn't take much to realize her time with Potter Club had opened her up somewhat and now she was able to talk about much more than lessons and homework. The one topic she still shied away from, much to the amusement of her roommates, was boys.

It had been a while since she had gotten her Valentine's gift and it seemed to have just been a one off. Then again she supposed that the holiday was a romantic celebration, perhaps the person just had more to think about than romance on any other day. Then again she could just be overthinking the entire thing.

Perhaps she would understand more when puberty struck.

That was something she was not looking forward to.

Entering the Common Room she could see Oliver Wood bent over the table, half a dozen pages of notes in front of him. None of them however were in regards to anything she would consider studying. As lucrative a job as it may be, a Quidditch Analyser was not on her list of potential jobs.

She did have to admire his passion for the game, especially since Gryffindor needed to win this in or order to come second overall, the Slytherin team having already secured top position with wins against all their opposition.

Hermione exited the gathering area before it got too crowded, not wanting to get caught up in the stampede of students desperate to get something to eat before the big game. Making her way down the maze like structure that was the Hogwarts stairwell, she rocked back and forth on the spot whilst waiting for the stairs to come her way. During this time however her gaze fell upon the forbidden third floor.

It seemed like such a long time ago since the whole thing had been mentioned and she was honestly surprised that nobody had dared to go against the Headmaster's words. At the beginning of the school year she would have never contemplated going somewhere that could potentially have devastating results. Now though she couldn't help but be curious.

Harry had really been a bad influence on her.

As the stairwell clicked into place, Hermione's mindset shifted back to breakfast, the grumble erupting from her stomach reminding her of her current quest. Making her way down to the ground floor, Hermione spotted a couple of her fellow first year students standing near the entrance to the Great Hall, one of them clearly distinguishable by their identical colour of hair to her own.

While Hermione wouldn't say that she was on positive ground with the two Slytherin students after what they had been through they were at least not on each other's bad side, although Hermione did wonder whether one of the two students actually had a bad side. "What's going on?" she asked as she closed the gap.

"Oh hey Hermione," said Tracy, arguable the person who should not have been sorted into Slytherin in the slightest. She had an almost infectious bubbly personality that just seemed so out of place in the dungeons that Hermione was certain that the Sorting Hat had made a mistake. "Potter Club put up a notice."

"Really, what's it say?" asked Hermione having not expected this.

"Before you get too excited," said Daphne, having seen how interested Hermione was getting into the subject, "Know that this isn't the positive news you may have been hoping for."

"You mean...there isn't a foretold prank or something like that?"

"The opposite," said Tracy, her mood visibly deflating.

"Apparently Potter Club's going on break until the end of exams," said Daphne.

"Really?" said Hermione genuinely shocked. While the timing she and the rest of the members of Potter Club wouldn't be effected by the schedule update it was still surprising that it would be announced in such a way. "I guess it makes sense, you've seen what Potter Club can do, surely there must be a seventh year student in there who has to focus on their exams."

"Makes sense," said Daphne with a shrug of the shoulders. "Anyways, I for one am famished and require some breakfast."

"Wait for me," said Tracy as Daphne started to walk away. "Nice talking with you," she said to Hermione before she vanished into the giant dining room.

"You too," said Hermione softly before focusing her attention on the note. They hadn't been lying, it seemed that one of their members had put up a notification that they would be on hiatus until nobody's grades would be affected. Marching into the Great Hall, Hermione's eyes locked onto one of the sole occupants before casually striding over to where he was munching on a bowl of cereal.

"I take it the sign in the entrance was your idea," said Hermione as she sat down next to Harry, the Great Hall relatively empty at this time of the morning.

"The one claiming that Potter Club wouldn't partake in any activities during the exam period? Yes, that's mine," said Harry as he took another spoonful of cereal. "Wasn't sure when you guys were planning your big events but I took an estimated guess that you wouldn't do so during exams."

"And what if we were?" asked Hermione.

"You wouldn't," stated Harry keeping his eyes down at the parchment in front of him. "Do you really think I'd pull a prank while the seventh years are sitting their N.E.W.T.S, potentially throwing them off their game and preventing them from reaching their potential?"

Hermione's glare softened at that before she opted to focus instead on feeding herself, finding no fault with what Harry was saying. While such timing would be good from an entertainment perspective, perhaps it was best that they didn't meddle to heavily with each student's future.

"Are you ready for exams?" asked Harry shifting the conversation as more people began to enter the dining hall.

"As ready as I can be," beamed Hermione as she loaded her plate with two eggs and some bacon. "I think Potions will be the hardest though but that's mostly because Snape's…

"A dick?" offered Harry.

"I was going to say stern."

"No you weren't," said Harry earning him a playful slap on the shoulder. "Anyways, I've gotta get ready for practice, gotta defeat Hufflepuff and all that. Yay."

Hermione could practically see the sarcasm. "Speaking of Quidditch, are we going to go down and…you know, fix the problem?"

The problem Hermione was referring to was that during the Ravenclaw/Slytherin showdown the other day the Hufflepuff Badger had finally managed to burst it's way through the boundary separating it and the Slytherin serpent. Many ignored what was happening on the pitch as the two animated pictures had their natural instincts take over and they began to fight with one another. Even the commentary had switched to how the snake was getting torn to shreds as the badger ignored the bite marks inflicted on it.

Needless to say it was demoralizing to the Slytherin students who since then had seemingly distanced themselves just a touch further from their Hufflepuff peers.

At the end of the match, Hermione and Harry had waited behind after the game along with a vast number of students who were highly disappointed as Professor Dumbledore removed the sketches from the wall, no explanation given. They couldn't particularly blame the Headmaster, the battle had been short, sharp and surprisingly brutal. Of course the badger opting to eat the snake after having killed it probably didn't set a good example to the students.

"Nah, that one's done and dusted," said Harry. "Perhaps we can find one of the unused classrooms and make it an unofficial aviary by having Susan create dozens of bird sketches but that's a plan for another day. Think for this year I'm done and dusted, don't wanna distract myself from exams and all that."

Hermione couldn't help but scowl as she watched Harry get signaled over by the rest of the Gryffindor team who were about to head down to the Quidditch Pitch. She couldn't deny he was intelligent by any stretch of the imagination and arguably he was going to have an easier time in the exams than she was. The problem though was that she had rarely seen him do any actual schoolwork. Most of the time they were studying he would write out a foot of parchment in only a handful of minutes as if by memory before focusing on much more complicated topics that could be used for pranks.

Thus Hermione was quite perplexed when Harry had stated that he would focus on his exams. He was more than ready, she wholeheartedly believed that. If he didn't need the time to study on that and wasn't going to be pulling any more pranks over the course of the school year, just what was Harry Potter going to be doing?

...

Sitting in an unused classroom, Harry had opted to hide away from the celebrations that were likely going on in his honour. He had made quick work of the Quidditch game, having successfully tracked down and captured the snitch in only a handful of minutes. By all means he could have let the game drag on but he hadn't wanted Wood to have a go at him for having wasted time when victory was at hand.

In his moment of isolation, Harry was free to contemplate the battle that was to come, the second time in which Voldemort and he would confront one another, in this timeline at least. Despite having faced him or his lackeys on who knows how many different occasions Harry still knew that it wasn't going to be easy. Whether or not he still had his Mother's protection surrounding him was up for debate, especially since recently whenever he looked at the back of Quirrell's head he wasn't getting the searing pains that he once had. This could either be from his mother's magic no longer protecting him or possibly symbolizing that the Horcrux that had been buried in his forehead was fading away into nothingness for good.

Since there was practically no information on either form of magic in the library he really didn't have much to go on. This of course meant that he wasn't going to risk his fight with Quirrell by slapping the man in the face to see whether or not he turned to ash. Despite how humorous the entire situation could be in that regard, Harry, for the moment, chose life.

Which then raised the question; just what did he do from here?

Unfortunately, not confronting the possessed professor wasn't an option. While the charms that Dumbledore had cast over the mirror were more than impressive it didn't mean that they were unbreakable. Harry had to guess there was a ten percent chance that Quirrell would be able to figure out the secret and that was far too high a percentage for his liking.

Going by himself to follow Quirrell would likely be the safest option, not particularly wanting to endanger the lives of his friends. Whether Ron would even be keen to come was up to debate, Harry not really having become the long standing friend that he had the last time round. Heck at the moment he had to say that his friendship with Neville was stronger than the one he had with Ron.

He'd really have to look into fixing that next year.

The question though was that if he didn't have his mother's protection to guard him would he be capable of taking on Voldemort. Arguably he would only be facing a weakened version but he wasn't a dark lord for nothing. He wasn't quite keen to test his offensive capabilities where there were other options available, however few there may be.

The reckless (or safest, whichever way you looked at it) option was informing a teacher of his beliefs and getting one or more of them to escort him to the third floor and the traps that lay beneath. The question then became one of who was most likely to believe his story without inquiring too much into the reasoning. Professor McGonagall was right out, the deputy headmistress wouldn't believe him for a second, let alone give him permission to do something stupidly reckless. Professor Snape was an option but could turn out to be one that would have dire consequences in the future. Harry had no real clue just what the parasitic semblance of Voldemort actually was, nor the shade that had emerged from Quirrell later on. By all means Voldemort could command his 'loyal' subject to strike at Harry. Harry had no real idea what Snape would do at that time, and would rather not jeopardize the operation by finding out just how far Snape was willing to go to protect his allegiances to each side.

Pushing himself to his feet, Harry came to a conclusion and while he didn't particularly like the idea of lying to a teacher, he couldn't tell them the truth by any stretch of the imagination. Taking in a deep breath, Harry now had to figure out just what would be a believable lie for his intended target to believe him.

…

"…And that's why I believe you should accompany me to the forbidden third floor the day in which Professor Dumbledore goes to the Ministry of Magic," concluded Harry, praying that his speech was believed.

"So, let me get this straight Harry," said Professor Flitwick as he tried to summarize what the boy in front of him had stated. "You were walking down the corridor when one of our teachers grabbed you on the shoulder and stated that in the coming weeks Professor Dumbledore will vacate Hogwarts temporarily, a villainous fiend will try to retrieve a precious artifact, and this part I'm not sure how you deduced, only you and I are able to prevent him from succeeding. Is that correct?"

"Pretty much," said Harry with a shrug. "It kind of came out of nowhere and the teacher didn't even seem to recollect having actually said anything afterwards, she just skittered off as if the suits of armour were going to leap out and attack her."

"It seems then that you had a run in with Professor Trelawney, the Divination teacher," said Flitwick as he scratched at his chin. "While I'm not one for her arts I cannot deny that what she has said does sound like a prophecy."

"What would happen were we not to follow her instructions?" asked Harry.

"Grave things I fear," said Flitwick as he started pacing around the room. For nearly a minute there was nothing but the light patter of feet on floorboards before Filius turned to Harry. "Unfortunately, if things go in this manner then we have no option but to do as commanded. Even informing anybody else of this situation may cause great danger and deviate from the chosen path. For now, please remain quiet on this topic and if I learn of anything I will inform you after our next class."

"Thank you Professor," said Harry with a cheesy smile.

"Now off with you boy, you have given me much to think about," said Filius as he dismissed the young student, Harry having no problem with exiting the room as quickly as he could. Step one was complete, now he would have to be patient and wait for the rest of the steps to reveal themselves.

It would seem the game had changed.


	15. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

 **...**

"Harry, before we venture any further I must request that you follow my instructions at all times, regardless of the situation," declared Flitwick as he stood in the Forbidden Corridor alongside the first year student. "This prophecy that we are a part of, to my knowledge, didn't actually explain what parts we would have to play in what is to come. What is in there however is highly dangerous and much more than a first year student is able to cope with. Promise me that you won't do anything reckless."

As Harry promised that he wouldn't do anything unless ordered, the half-human teacher was looking at the young student with a wary eye. By now he had been expecting a plethora of strange and elaborate questions regarding the dangers that he had briefly mentioned. For a child not yet a teenager, this was odd behaviour to say the least. Considering how calm Harry actually was seemed simply unnatural and Fillius pondered whether or not Harry had partaken in some manner of potions beforehand in order to not freak out about every little situation that would come their way.

No, a first year student wouldn't have been able to brew Calming Droughts, regardless of how much of a prodigy they were. Theoretically the boy could have stolen such a potion from the Hospital Wing but he thought it unlikely. This did raise the question however as to why Harry was holding his mentality like that of someone twice his age. He did recall how Rita Skeeter had written about the level of maturity Harry had shown in an interview but considering the useless dribble which sprawled across her 'articles' he could hardly call it a decent reference.

Now though he wasn't so sure just what to think.

"Are you alright, sir?" asked Harry, snapping Fillius out of his muse.

"Yes, sorry, just lost my focus there for a second," said Fillius as he composed himself.

"Well then, shall we?" said Harry as he gestured towards the door. As Professor Flitwick and Harry prepared to duke it out with the tests beneath them, little did they know that their process was being followed.

"I don't understand," said Hermione as she looked at the Marauder's Map, watching the little marks indicating both Harry and the Charms Professor proceed deeper into the forbidden corridor.

"What part?"

"Cause honestly there's a lot about this…"

"That doesn't make any kind of sense…"

"Which we sometimes find…"

"Is the best kind of sense."

Hermione looked up from the map sprawled across the table at the twins who had only been more than happy to allow the brown-haired girl use of their (technically Harry's) precious artefact. "Well we have to work backwards then," declared Hermione.

"Considering the two of you are practically tied to the hip, have you noticed anything odd about Harry as of late?" asked one of the brothers.

"That's a nice question, Fred."

"Why thank you, Fred."

Sometimes she hated when they did this but for now Hermione simply took in a deep breath and focused on the question. "Ever since he put up the sign declaring Potter Club would be temporarily inactive, he seemed a bit more…distant than normal," answered Hermione.

"Distant how?" they asked at the same time.

"He would just be gone for hours at a time," said Hermione slowly. "I'd be working on homework with him or reading a book or something in the common room with him before he would go up to his room and then just vanish."

"How do you know he had vanished…"

"When you couldn't access his room?"

"I asked Neville to go up for me," said Hermione.

"So you believe all of his frequent disappearances then were leading up to this?"

"Very nice question there, George."

"Why thank you, George."

Hermione ground her teeth against one another before calming herself once more. "That's about the only thing that adds up. We know Harry is powerful, far more so than anyone our age should be."

"Perhaps this is a test?"

"A trial perhaps?"

"But that wouldn't give Professor Dumbledore enough reason to tell every student that the floor was forbidden; just that they couldn't enter it without permission from a faculty member. 'A painful death' doesn't particularly state that it would be safe at all, let alone as some kind of test. We don't have any evidence and basically we're just grasping at straws."

"Do you think it might have anything to do with why Professor Quirrell is at the end of the tunnel?" asked one of the twins as they pointed at the map. Hermione and Fred/George's brother George/Fred looked at the part of the map in question. While Harry was currently zipping around one room as if on a broom, down the number of rooms they had yet to cross was Quirinus Quirrell, pacing up and down the final part of the collection of rooms.

He was not alone.

It was Hermione who spoke next, her question however was unable to be answered. None of the three students had heard of the person whose name clung to the defence professor like a parasite.

"Who's Tom Riddle?"

…

Once more the Charms Professor had to be impressed with the level headedness the child next to him had shown. At the beginning of the set of tasks he had known something was wrong, the giant harp lulling Hagrid's pet to sleep was as bad a warning sign as anything. The more disturbing sign was that Harry hadn't even looked surprised at the giant Cerberus, he didn't even try and feign shock. With each and every test they passed Harry seemed to already know what to expect.

Filius had started to doubt Harry's story whilst solving the giant chess board, the task giving him enough time between moves to start putting plot holes into Harry's story. He knew it was wrong to second guess the first year student, especially since he had been correct in knowing that the precious artefact stored within the walls of Hogwarts was in danger. The supposed prophecy though didn't go into details on each and every task that they would have to take.

Harry knew more than what was going on, Filius didn't know how but if the child really had more than an inkling of what was going on here then who was he to complain? Someone had clearly gone after the Philosopher's Stone and as far as he could tell, any and all help would be greatly appreciated.

The questions would come later.

Now though, with the last task behind them, the diminutive teacher turned to the boy who had journeyed with him thus far. Before he was able to say anything however he was cut off by Harry. "I take it you don't want me to come with you past this point," he said.

"Quite right, while we have faced dangers thus far we know not what we may find beyond the next door and I will not risk your life with an unknown threat," said the professor. "I hope you understand."

"Here's where I counter and say that there is safety in numbers."

"Here's where I use my authority over you and humbly request that as a student you listen to your teacher. Now before we continue this banter further please wait here, I'll be back in a jiffy."

"Alright professor," said Harry as he crossed his arms over his chest, clearly not liking the situation. To Filius however it mattered not how much young Mister Potter liked the situation. To this point he had known of all the obstacles they had to encounter.

Beyond this last door however there was no telling what he would find.

…

"Filius, how unexpected," said Quirinus, dropping his stuttering persona, sensing that there was no need for it. He had been caught red handed, the blasted mirror in front of him had stooped him for far longer than it should have. By now the Dark Lord should have been resurrected and praising him for his efforts.

"Explain!" demanded Filius, his wand already out and prepared for battle. Slow cautious steps echoed through the room as the Charms Professor made his way down the stairs. His wrist was steady and his eyes sharp, flicking from side to side as often as he could to ensure that no further traps had been laid.

He would not be caught unprepared.

"I don't need to explain anything," said the Defence Professor as his arm lifted up slowly, wand held in a vice like grip. It never reached the appropriate angle before Quirinus had to leap to the side, a blast of magic causing the ground he had been standing on to explode in a shower of stone. That was not the end to the attack however as he had cast a shield that rendered the debris into nothing, his opponent having used the newest part of the battlefield to attack him. Turning simple levitation charms into an attack, this was the calibre of the man he was facing.

Pitiful.

"For an opening attack, I'm disappointed," declared Quirinus before his wand was moving swiftly, intricate patterns dancing in front of him before the columns that stood either side of exploding. Heavy chunks of stone and mortar rained down upon the diminutive duellist who shot a quick stunner at Quirinus before ensuring his survival. Blocking the spell was a simple exercise for Quirinus but the time taken in order to ensure his safety prevented him from following up on his attack.

Instead of focusing his next assault on Filius, Quirinus instead turned his attention to a large chunk of mortar that had fallen to the other side. While Transfiguration wasn't particularly his strong point he was skilled enough for this. His intended target indeed changed shape and form, twisting from stone into flesh and with a ferocious roar the lion he had transfigured leapt into action, claws and teeth poised for the kill.

The lion never reached it's intended target, the beast having been knocked clean off course and in turn reverting back to its previous form. It was only through sheer battle experience that Quirinus stepped to the side and avoided the cutting curse that would have pierced through his skull. Avoided for the most part at least.

His ear had been severed clean off, blood poured down the side of his head as his turban fell to the ground. While it burned, Quirinus cast a quick fire spell at the side of his head in order to cauterize the wound. It would seem first blood had been spilled, the attacker though was not one that he had been expecting. "That's a second year spell Harry Potter, you've been studying ahead it seems," said Quirinus as he saw the black haired boy step forward to be side by side to Filius who had managed to escape any injury thus far.

It seemed he was getting rusty.

"The boy…he can help…" said a raspy voice that belonged to none of the three men.

"Are you sure Master?" said Quirinus, not lowering his wand for a second.

"Master?" repeated Filius in confusion, opting at the moment to not scold Harry for not having adhered to his instructions to stay behind. It seemed as if his skill would be more of a benefit than not and at the moment he would take any help he could.

"He's talking about the parasite stuck to the back of his head, the leech known as Tom Riddle," explained Harry quite loudly.

"You dare speak of my Master in such a way!" shouted Quirinus.

"The boy…do not let his words…provoke you," said the voice once more.

"Hey Tom, what's it like to get some fresh air after a year wrapped up in a turban?" asked Harry.

"Professor, it must have been hard for you as well, heavens if you rolled over in your sleep you would suffocate the cockless prick latched on you."

"…Kill him!"

"As you command," shouted Quirinus as he shot a spell at Harry, the young boy levitating the debris in front of him to block the attack as Filius launched a counter attack, Quirinus having to shield straight away in order to block the hex. Before he could launch another attack a cutting curse was cast at him, this one piercing through his leg. He screamed in anguish for but a moment before a blasting curse caught him in the chest, shattering several ribs.

Collapsing to his hands and knees, Quirinus couldn't help but expel blood from his mouth and didn't even pay attention as he was disarmed, his strength having left him. Had he truly grown so weak?

"Harry Potter," came the voice of his master. "You have grown splendidly. I was right…in trying to kill you as a babe. You will grow stronger still. A worthy challenger…has now appeared. You and I…will one day dance…the dance of death. Until that day…farewell Harry Potter."

Quirinus couldn't even get a word out before he felt the strength of Voldemort leave him, the master he had protected forcibly separating himself off of Quirinus. Whatever strength he had had at that moment was sapped from him, the life force forcibly taken would sustain his master long enough for him to cheat death once more. As his limbs gave way beneath him, he couldn't help but smile.

He'd done his duty.

He could die in peace.

…

Harry watched as the shade flew away, neither he nor the Charms Professor having a spell that could contain it. Biting at the inside of his lip Harry couldn't help but feel that this had been a shallow victory. Quirinus was now dead at their feet and Voldemort had gotten away. The stone though was safe, that had to count for something.

"Mister Potter," said Filius as the Charms Professor looked up at Harry. "Firstly I must state that it was foolish of you to go against my warning, I told you to stay behind for a reason."

"But…"

"I guess I must thank you for stepping in when you did," said Filius. "I don't quite know how or why you know what you do, which is a lot more than you're letting on I can tell that much. I will not pry however as you clearly have your mind set on the goal ahead which it seems is defeating Lord Voldemort."

"You said his name!" exclaimed Harry. "I've found someone else who can say his name!"

"I am part Goblin Mister Potter, it would be a dishonour upon us if we dare not speak the name of our enemy," explained Professor Flitwick.

"You mean a whole civilization can speak his name!"

"Regardless of my ability to speak a name, you were more than aware of what was going on and played a great part in preventing Voldemort from regaining a corporeal body," said Filius. "No amount of house points will be appropriate for such an accomplishment but instead I offer you this. Both for the remainder of this year and next I believe that you can be relieved from my classes."

"You're kicking me out of class?"

"In return, please use this extra time to prepare yourself for the war to come and believe me, if this was just a taste of what is in store then believe me when I state that war is coming," said Filius. "I will speak of what happened here tonight with the Headmaster but minimize your participation in it. I think for now as few people as possible should know of your strength."

"Thank you," said Harry happy that his prowess wasn't going to be displayed for the world to see.

"If there is anything more you need of me, now or in the future, please don't hesitate to ask."

"Thank you," said Harry again as Filius started to head toward the exit. Harry meanwhile breathed a sigh of relief before he turned his attention towards the mirror that stood proudly in the middle of the room.

There he stood, an older version of himself looking down on him with a smile in all of his naked glory as a beautiful woman stood by his side, their hands pressing against all parts of his body, gliding up and down and feeling every nook and crevice. He could almost feel the manicured nails sliding up and down his skin and tearing it to bits. Quite the sensation, he felt, even though it was only all in his head. And speaking of heads, the one covering his groin like a censor bar seemed familiar. Though now slicked out more, the bushy curls were unmistakeable.

If she ever found out he would die by sodomy with his own wand. Wingardium Levi-owsah.

"Come along now Harry," shouted Filius, snapping Harry out of his stupor and he quickly tore his gaze away from the image in front of him. That…that was his desire? Not bad by any means but still! The jovial feeling of being with his parents had seemingly long since passed and apparently he wanted nothing more than to be in the middle of a threeway. He summarized it was probably due to the fact he was reaching puberty for the second time, hormones he had already gotten used to rearing their head once again and fuelling his imagination.

He just wished though that both women weren't amongst his peers.

…

Hermione and the twins had no real idea what to make of the event they had watched on the map, especially since there was so little context to go off. One thing was certain however, with their Defence Professor's name fading from the map it could only mean that he had passed away. Once more though, they couldn't make heads or tails about the situation without any form of context.

As they watched Harry and Professor Flitwick backtrack through everything they had gone through earlier they had unanimously decided not to pry into any of the details. None of them particularly wanted to know why Professor Quirrell had died and unless they were told of the circumstance they would not ask any questions.

Curiosity killed the cat after all.

…

Albus currently sat in the middle of the Great Hall, the area decked with the red and gold of Gryffindor while his fingers remained laced beneath his chin. Voldemort had infiltrated his castle, latched to one of the very Professors he had employed throughout the year. It was mildly ironic that that was likely as close to the Defence Against the Dark Arts position Tom Riddle would ever get.

When he had returned from the Ministry it had been to find Filius waiting for him in his office with a grim tale to tell. Having shared in a glass of Firewhiskey with the Charms Professor ad Filius explained how he and young Harry Potter had entered the forbidden third floor and confronted Professor Quirrell.

While he didn't approve of Filius having taken a student towards such danger he couldn't help but admit that the right choice was made, even if both members were unaware of the prophecy. Thus he had to play the part of Headmaster and scold Filius for putting a student in danger before praising him for his effort against Lord Voldemort.

He had been afraid that Tom Riddle hadn't died that night a decade ago and here was proof. It would seem that the battle was about to begin. No, the battle had never ended in the first place; it had just been temporarily put on hiatus.

Ignoring that situation for the moment, his eyes focused on the students amassed before him. After all, this was the final feast and Gryffindor's celebration for having won the House Cup. He would focus on the battle that was to come at a later date, for now he had a speech to make.

Pushing himself upright, silenced reigned about the hall moments after Minerva had hit her knife against the side of her goblet. Taking in a deep breath, Albus set about the last speech he would have to make for the school year.

It was unfortunately lost in translation.

…

"Un altro anno passato e devo problemi con cialda sibili di un vecchio, prima di affondare i denti nella nostra delizioso banchetto. Che anno è stato! Speriamo che le teste sono tutti un po 'più ampia di quanto non fossero. Hai tutta l'estate davanti a farli bella e vuota prima anno inizia la prossima. Ora, se ho capito bene, la Coppa delle Case qui ha bisogno di premiazione, ei punti di stare così..."

At first it had started as a snigger, followed into a chortle before the Great Hall was bursting with laughter, the mere fact that Albus Dumbledore was clearly trying to make a very important speech made it all the more hilarious. Little did he realize that the set of runes at the front of the stage where a set quite commonly used when speaking with foreign dignities. This set in particular allowed all those on the other side of the line to hear everything in Italian.

It only got more entertaining when Snape stood up, his eyes ablaze as he started demanding the students show some respect, or that's at least what Harry thought the Potions Master would be attempting to say. Before it could get anymore out of hand a firework shot out from behind the teacher's bench startling the faculty as they looked up just as it exploded, golden letters spelling out a very simple message.

 _POTTER CLUB WILL RETURN_

...

 **Thus first year comes to a close. Thank you for joining me to this point and I hope you have enjoyed.**

 **Until next time.**


	16. Chapter 16

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

 **...**

Harry sat within the confines of his room at Privet Drive, the pencil in his hand copying down ingredients that he would be need to look into purchasing for the following school year. Of course there was the stock of standard ingredients that would be necessary for Potions Class with Snape, but then again those would be the ingredients everybody would be getting their hands on.

He, of course, was looking at something well above and beyond the curriculum.

The end of year feast had been quite entertaining from his standpoint and he couldn't help but think that the fireworks had been the creation of the Weasley Twins. He recalled how they had told him of the fireworks they had let loose over the Christmas period and as a result he knew that there was a possibility that people would connect the dots. All providing they wanted to of course.

At the moment, Harry had to admit that the biggest reason why none of them had truly been tracked down yet, cause goodness knew Albus Dumbledore could if he wished, was because nobody wanted to track them down. The faculty and their peers were always amazed and astounded whenever Potter Club brought something out of the blue, reminding them that magic was meant to be magical.

The opening of his bedroom door snapped him out of his musings as he looked over his shoulder to look at his aunt. When he had gotten picked up from the station by his uncle he had played as much of a pacifist as he could, knowing full well that a single inappropriate word would send his uncle off on a spiral about the freak he was. Harry had just been grateful that his uncle had actually remembered to pick him up but assumed that Hogwarts would have sent letters out to all the parents and guardians informing them of when the train would arrive at the station.

It had been two weeks since that day and he hadn't had any run ins with his relatives as of yet, his uncle and cousin having wanted nothing to do with him with the exception of giving him jobs around the house. Harry imagined that this was likely still due to the whole pig tail incident with Hagrid. On the scarce times he had seen his aunt, especially when the rest of her family was vacant from the room, he had seen her giving him peculiar looks. If they peculiar as in, 'I wonder what the freak is plotting,' kind of way Harry would have understood it. These facial expressions however he just couldn't truly explain and it confused the hell out of him.

"Can I help you Aunt Petunia?" he asked politely as he put down his pencil and turned to look at her.

"I'm just here to inform you that we are going out for dinner tonight," she said sternly. "There is bread and jam for you downstairs."

"Have fun at dinner," said Harry before he returned to his extra curricular activities, hearing the door close behind him. Once more his aunt had been looking at him with minimal disdain and he pushed the thought to the back of his mind. He would figure it out at a later date.

It wouldn't be much later before he heard the car start up outside and knew that it was safe to venture downstairs and not get in the way of his relatives. Pushing himself away from his studies, Harry exited his den and made his way downstairs towards the kitchen. Bypassing his former room/prison, Harry entered the kitchen only to have his breath catch in his throat at what he saw before him. He knew this moment was coming but hadn't prepared for it as much as he would have liked, especially when it had come earlier than expected.

"Dobby," he said softly as he spotted the house elf standing on the kitchen tiles, looking up at him in awe.

"Harry Potter, he knows Dobby's name?" said the house elf in admiration.

"Well," said Harry slowly as he tried to figure a way to bullshit himself out of this situation. "I'm a great wizard you see, and great wizards know these kinds of things."

"Harry Potter is indeed a great wizard, a very great wizard indeed," said Dobby repeating on himself. "Dobby though is here for a reason. Harry Potter…"

"Wait Dobby," said Harry putting his hand up and preventing the house elf from continuing. "I'm going to use my powers of awesomeness to assume exactly what it is you are here for."

"Harry Potter can do such a thing. Dobby never heard of this kind of magic."

"Dobby, I sense you are here to tell me not to go back to Hogwarts, that dark things are soon to happen and that I would be safe here," said Harry knowing exactly what was to come. Or at least what would happen if he decided not to throw a monkey wrench into the works.

"The great Harry Potter knows many things and thus must know that he must not go back to Hogwarts," warned Dobby.

Ignoring how convoluted Dobby's sentence was, Harry sharpened his eyes as he knew exactly what was needed to be done. No way was he going to end up flying with Ron back to Hogwarts this year if he could help it. "Dobby, allow me to be very clear about this," said Harry as he knelt down so that he could look Dobby squarely in the eyes. "I know terrible things will happen at Hogwarts this year but I have the power to stop it, the power to save people."

"Harry Potter must save Harry Potter before anyone else…"

"Dobby, if people died while I could save them then I wouldn't be able to save myself," said Harry, his eyes sharpening. "Harry Potter is a great wizard, and great wizards do great things. Now, you can be certain of this Dobby, I am going back to Hogwarts and I will do great things."

Dobby just stood there, looking at Harry, the young wizard basically able to see the cogs turning in the elf's mind. Dobby's attention turned to the floor and for a moment it looked as if the small creature was going to start doing some damage to both himself and the furniture around him. "One of the great things Harry Potter will do this year is to make sure Dobby goes free," said Harry, stopping Dobby before he started.

"Free Dobby?" said the house elf quietly as Harry put a finger to his lips, Dobby understanding that this was to be a secret. "Dobby understands, Dobby will do nothing to stop Harry Potter from going to Hogwarts. You are a great wizard Harry Potter, please do great things."

With a click of his fingers Dobby blinked out of existence, leaving Harry alone in the kitchen. Allowing a sigh of relief to escape his lips, Harry stood up feeling that this year was now going to be better as a result of what he had accomplished just then. Sure, he still needed to get the diary off of Ginny -preferably before this whole Heir of Slytherin debacle began, goodness knew he didn't need that nightmare again- which basically meant he needed to be in Diagon Alley on the same day as the Weasleys. He was sure that he could arrange that.

Focusing back to the present, Harry made his pitiful excuse of a sandwich and exited the kitchen, not wanting to be there anymore than he had to. Upon entering his room though he found a neat stack of letters sitting upon his desk. "Oh yeah…" said Harry as he took a bite of his sandwich, now recalling that Dobby had been stealing his mail to this point to try and dissuade him from going back to Hogwarts. Funny how that had never popped up in conversation this time round.

Shrugging his shoulders, Harry sat down at his desk and had a quick look at the letters he had been sent. Hermione's letter was to be expected, so too was Ron's, Harry having tried to rekindle the friendship that wasn't going half as well as it had during the first part of the school year. The one from Susan wasn't much of a surprise but the one from Neville was one indeed, Harry not having expected the timid boy to write to him.

That though was nothing compared to the envelope at the end which immediately caught his attention. Putting the other letters to the side for the moment, promising to himself that he would read them as soon as he could. Tearing open the envelope, Harry quickly opened the letter and began to read through the contents, his eyes widening slightly as he realized the importance of this letter and was so happy that Dobby had returned this letter above the rest. He was also glad the set meeting date had yet to pass and knew that he had to mentally prepare himself for the event he had to attend.

The fun part would be explaining it to his uncle.

…

"And just where do you think you're going, boy?" asked Uncle Vernon as he saw Harry head towards the door.

"I have a meeting to attend," explained Harry as he looked his uncle in the face. "Before you say anything, please know that this is something important and I will…"

"Don't give me any of that codswallop boy! Now get out into the garden and do the weeds like you're meant to," ordered Vernon.

"With all due respect, I'm about to meet with someone that very well may ensure that you never have to see me again," said Harry. "Think about it, never having to see me ever again uncle, doesn't that just sound wonderful."

"Ever again," said Vernon as if in a trance before focusing on Harry once more. "Boy if you're pulling my leg just know that no amount of freakishness will protect you from me."

"Trust me Uncle Vernon, this is something I would never lie about."

…

Harry had to admit that he had never actually wanted to enter the Ministry of Magic, the only times he had actually done so had been both highly illegal and made this current way seem rather drab and boring. "Name?" asked the clerk, not even having the decency to look at him as she played with her platinum blonde hair.

"Harry Potter."

That got her attention.

Peering over her desk she looked at Harry who simply stood there smiling whilst waving at her. "Hello there."

"Mister Potter, my apologies," she said quickly.

"That's quite alright, Natasha."

"Harry Potter knows my name!"

Harry simply pointed at his shirt in the same location that Natasha's nametag was located. This of course caused Natasha to sober up somewhat and remind her that she had a job to do. "What purpose are you here for, Mister Potter?" she asked.

"I have an appointment with the Minister of Magic," announced Harry. "Unfortunately I haven't the foggiest how to find his office."

It would seem that fate had decided not to be kind to him this day as an extremely loud clearing of the throat tore his attention off of Natasha to one Dolores Umbridge adorned in her painfully pink attire. "Mister Potter, the Minister of Magic has asked me to escort you to his office," she said.

Harry sincerely doubted that she had been asked to do so and more commanded but had little time to say anything as Dolores turned on her heel and began marching away. "See you later, Natasha," said Harry as he quickly jogged after Umbridge, closing the gap within seconds.

Harry wasn't surprised that Umbridge practically refused to acknowledge his existence, walking at a pace he had trouble keeping up with. If he got lost within the masses she would likely apologize but ultimately say that the blame was not on her. Considering though she stood out like a sore thumb in the crowd it would be nigh impossible to lose her.

Eventually they reached a private elevator and Harry was mildly upset that Umbridge was still accompanying him past this point but said nothing of it. The rectangular box burst into life, firstly shooting backwards before stopping abruptly and heading upwards. The crazy path continued for roughly a minute before it came to a stop, revealing a receptionist room, two oaken doors proudly standing past the pink monstrosity that Harry could only assume was Umbridge's desk.

Rolling his shoulders, Harry marched forth with purpose in his stride and pushing both doors out of the way and marching straight down the middle towards Fudge's desk. "Harry my boy, glad you could make it," said the Minister of Magic as he stood up from the work he was doing, shuffling around the piles of paperwork to properly greet him.

Harry took a quick moment to actually inspect his surroundings and found it surprisingly relaxing. Other than the mountains of paperwork -which actually went to show that as Minister of Magic there was some manner of work to be done as opposed to just posing for photos- there were a few newspaper headlines hanging on the wall, all of them praising Fudge in his efforts over the years. Surrounded by one's accomplishments, Harry started to realize just how Fudge could have become so stuck up in his own ego over the years. Regardless, that was not the reason why he was here.

"Thank you for having me," said Harry as he shook the Minister's hand. "Will there by anyone else joining us this morning?"

"Madam Bones will arrive shortly," said Fudge as he fluffed around with his suit jacket. "Can I offer you any refreshments while we wait?"

"Firewhiskey," said Harry without missing a beat which in turn got an awkward chuckle out of the Minister.

"Perhaps Butterbeer is more appropriate," said Fudge as he walked past Harry to where an alcohol cabinet stood tall and proud. Opening up the left hand side, Harry couldn't help but feel a chill come through and figured that there were some manner of runes or charm work in play in order to keep that part of the cabinet at the same temperature as a fridge. "Here you are my boy," said Fudge as he passed the beverage to Harry who managed to mutter out a thankful response. "Once more, I'm so glad that you could make it today."

"Your letter meanwhile didn't really give me anything to go off," said Harry as he had a sip of his drink.

"Unfortunately, the nature of this discussion is not to leave this room due to the context and I trust that you'll be able to keep what is said today a secret," said Fudge. "While I like to think that our system is flawless I am more than aware that things sometimes don't go as they should."

"Your letter said that I'd been summoned here for my outburst when last we met, I take it though I'm not getting a slap on the wrist."

"Far from it my boy! You opened my eyes to a great injustice that was carried out by our system and I intend to see true justice prevail. However, the situation is what you would call…delicate."

"May I have a guess at the situation," said Harry, Fudge gesturing for him to continue. "The only thing I can think of here is that this is about Sirius."

Nod of approval.

"However you can't simply announce that he is innocent without covering all of your bases. While you could use claim his innocence through the use of the Daily Prophet he would still likely be hexed in the back were he to step foot into Diagon Alley. The public would still fear him and if knowledge of his freedom were to spread then he would be in even more danger. What you need is a way to swing the popular belief of his innocence without a shred of doubt."

"I so look forward to the day you join the political game," said Fudge with a cheeky smile. "You are right in that Black would be targeted. Calling him innocent would create pandemonium and rob us of any true chance to sway the belief of the people. Retrials for all of our prisoners would be demanded so for the moment we require evidence that would pin the guilt on someone else."

"Peter Pettigrew," said Harry.

"Yes, Black told me about that."

"You've spoken with him?" asked Harry.

"But of course, after your little tirade I had to discover the truth and as you said, Black was never given a trial. Due to the fall of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, my predecessor had sentenced Black to Azkaban to await trial but it seems but for some reason the trial never began. I visited Azkaban to question him with Madam Bones escorting me. We spoke with him at length and for a man who has spent such a long period of time in Azkaban he seemed quite sane, even joking around with his words as if just happy to have a conversation. When Pettigrew's name was brought up the room became quite serious; my apologies for the pun."

"Bound to happen."

"Anyway, Black explained everything from his perspective, vowing upon both his magic and his life that he was telling the truth. I felt no need to place him under Veritaserum, I could tell when he was speaking the truth. Somewhere out there is Pettigrew and he is the key to allowing Black back into society. If he has evaded capture this far however I fear we may never find him. Who would have thought that he was an unregistered Animagus and a rat at that? He could be living beneath London itself, have stowed away aboard a ship for some foreign land. I fear that he will never be found."

"Sirius isn't still in Azkaban though is he?"

"Heavens forbid, Black's currently holed up in an Auror safehouse, only Madam Bones and I know of its location."

"Unless of course you want to go see your Godfather," said Amelia, the head of the DMLE standing in the doorway having someone crept into the office unnoticed.

"Trust me, you have no idea how long I've waited to hear that," said Harry before putting the Butterbeer to his lips and chugging the entire bottle before slamming it on the desk. "So what are we waiting for?"

…

Sirius glanced at his image in the mirror, small cuts from his shave burning at his face but he knew that it would be worth it. The chunks of hair scattered about his feet went to show his skill with a pair of scissors was minimal but at least it was better than the shaggy mop he had previously had. Without his wand though he was effectively powerless to do anything and for the moment there was no way to get hold of a new one. There was a spare back at his family home but under no circumstance was he permitted to leave his temporary location.

For good reason he had to admit.

Splashing his face with water he was delighted to hear the wards chime out, signalling that somebody had just arrived via portkey and a smile lit itself upon his face. Arguably there was more than a little spring in his step as he made his way down the stairwell towards the kitchen, knowing full well where the portkey dropped off it's occupants. Amelia had likely come to visit once more, the chats they had been having as of late had helped him overcome his time spent with the Dementors. It wasn't that simple on paper but for now this was as best they could do. Recruiting a trained psychiatrist to peer inside his mind would have to wait a little while.

"Well hello there," said Sirius suavely as he swung into the kitchen only to pause as he noticed that Amelia wasn't alone. Fudge wasn't particularly a surprise, the Minister of Magic having come to visit him on a number of occasions, usually to apologize for the injustice caused by the government. He had nothing against him but the amount of times he had apologized for something he had no power over was starting to grate on his nerves. He tolerated it all however as undoubtedly, he was the reason that he was currently out of the Azkaban.

The third person to appear before him was someone he had not yet been introduced to, at least not since he was a little bundle of joy. One could question how he knew exactly who the boy was but the resemblance of his best friend at that age was uncanny. There was no chance that he was anybody other than his Godson.

Harry meanwhile struggled with the lump that had formed in his throat. He had thought that he had been ready to see Sirius once more, ready and prepared to face the man who he had been closest to. It turned out no amount of mental preparation had been able to ready him for this.

"Harry," choked out Sirius as he knelt down to be closer to Harry's eye level.

Harry couldn't prevent the tears running down his face, nor could he prevent himself from charging forward and engulfing his godfather in a hug. While Sirius was unsure of why exactly he had nearly been tackled to the ground he couldn't find it in himself not to return the hug, his best friend's son wrapped safely in his arms.

It had been a moment he never thought would happen.

It would be a moment he would cherish forever.

...

 **Hope you enjoyed. Wasn't sure whether I'd get this chapter out in time as I'm moving state tomorrow and have spent a good deal of time packing up my life once again. Not sure when I'll next get a chance to post but please be patient and know that Potter Club will be back.**

 **Hope to see you then**

 **P.S. I'm terribly sorry if I insulted anyone with my terrible Italian translation last chapter, blame Google**


	17. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

 **...**

While it had been a touching reunion a decade in the making (three years for Harry) all good things had to come to an end. He had tried to make a play for staying with Sirius for the rest of the holidays but Fudge had put his foot down at that. When forced to explain Fudge had simply stated that there would be no way for Harry to return to the rest of the world which was slowly how Harry came to understand just where they were.

This safehouse was arguably one of the most protected places on the planet, not due to an innumerable amount of wards or a Fidelius Charm, but rather its location. Simply put, it was nowhere. The images of the outside of the window hadn't moved the entire time he had been there and Harry understood that whatever was on the other side of the pictures would not be as pleasant. The only way to and from Sirius' location was the portkey that Amelia possessed.

Thus Harry had changed tactics, requesting that he spend the rest of the holidays with Amelia where he could have access to go see his Godfather at any given time. Before she could state why such a thing was not a good idea, Fudge had said that it would be best both for Harry to reconnect with his Godfather while it would likely help Sirius' rehabilitation, despite the fact he was already far too sane for someone who had spent the last part of their life around Dementors. Treating it as an order, Amelia agreed to take Harry in only if his guardians agreed.

Which was how we ended up in this situation.

"Good riddance, get the freak out of my sight, we don't want any of his kind under our roof!"

Harry closed the door to his room before Amelia could launch into her retaliation. While it would have been interesting to listen in on (and especially interesting once Vernon learnt of the position Amelia held) he didn't want to spend a second longer than he had to in his relatives' house. Now though he had the conundrum on his hands regarding all of the books that were too far above his current recommended reading level.

A hoot from Hedwig sprung Harry into action like a starting pistol. His extra curricular books were quickly buried at the bottom of his trunk, his recommended reading being placed on top and hiding the other literature. To further hide their existence he shoved the contents of his wardrobe (ignoring all of the belongings that were 'given' to him from Dudley) before slamming the lid down, locking it only seconds before the door opened.

At first he thought that Amelia had entered to gather him up and get him out of here but he was surprised to find his aunt standing there. "So…you're leaving us then," she declared slowly as if unsure about how to proceed with this conversation.

"I guess so," said Harry as he got up from his kneeling position. Opening Hedwig's cage, he gave the snowy owl her orders to meet him at the Bones' residence and watched as she obeyed, flying out the window in all her glory.

"Off with you then," dismissed Petunia as she stepped out of the doorway allowing him free passage. Grabbing his trunk and Hedwig's cage, Harry puffed out his chest as he walked out of his prison.

"Stay safe."

The words were so soft that Harry almost missed them entirely but paused as he turned to look at his aunt who had already begun moving to another part of the house. Harry never thought he would feel this but he was conflicted in regards to his mother's sister. Arguably this was a lot better of a farewell then he had expected but for a moment it sounded as if his aunt actually cared for him, as preposterous as that sounded.

At the end of the day she was family.

He was leaving his family.

A small smile painted across his face before he made his way downstairs.

Perhaps part of his extended wasn't so bad after all. The other part meanwhile had managed to infuriate the wrong witch.

...

"The utter nerve of that man!" shouted Amelia as she apparated to her front doorstep, Harry by her side with trunk in hand. "How dare he make such bold-faced, utterly preposterous, highly offensive…"

"That's my uncle in a nutshell," said Harry as he released his grip on Amelia's hand.

Realizing what she was about to say in front of a child, Amelia did her best to control her temper, but it was still evidently apparent that her 'conversation' with Vernon had rattled her. "My apologies, I nearly lost control of myself there," she said as she straightened her attire. "I believe I now understand why you are much more mature than any other child I have ever met. The sheer willpower you must have just from having to put up with your uncle's blatant hate against wizardkind without retaliation would have driven me mad."

"That's one of the reasons," said Harry. "Perhaps this is why you were so confident allowing me to sleep in Susan's room without fear of any 'problems.'"

"If you're referring to what I believe you are, I should warn you that any attempts to do anything I deem inappropriate will have very severe side effects," said Amelia with a predator-esque grin on her face as if daring him to try something. "It's just amazing what some wards inside a bedroom can accomplish."

Harry brushed off the comment as he dragged his trunk inside. While the threat was likely very much real he had no intention of taking advantage of the situation in front of him. Despite what a certain mirror had tried to tell him.

Ignoring the lingering thoughts, Harry greeted Tiddy who quickly took his belongings as Madam Bones closed the door behind her. "Susan will be home in time for dinner," she said. "She's spending the day with a friend."

"Fair enough," said Harry, recalling how Susan didn't particularly like being alone while her aunt was at work. As he wandered into the kitchen the Daily Prophet was lying on the bench with one soon to be Defence Professor plastered over the front. "Now this could be interesting," he mumbled under his breath before seeing Madam Bones enter behind him. "Who is this guy?"

"Who?" asked Amelia before spotting the Prophet. "Gilderoy Lockhart…how do I put this nicely?"

"Please, be as blunt as possible," said Harry as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"Very well then, I do hope you will pardon my French" said Amelia as she cleared her throat.

"Mister Lockhart is the epitome of self-centered arseholes and when I work with the likes of Lucius Malfoy that is saying something. I have had the unfortunate pleasure of having met him in person and he is every bit the braggart as he is portrayed, believing wholeheartedly that he is the most important person on the planet and that I should have been honored to be in his presence. My sole regret when meeting him was not breaking his teeth and destroying all hopes he had of winning yet another pointless award. Have I gotten my point across?"

"Yes you have," said Harry as he picked up the paper and saw the image of Lockhart smiling and waving at his adoring fans. "I think it's time that Mister Lockhart was brought back down to reality."

A smirk crossed Amelia's face. As she had been unable to actually cause harm to the Muggle that had insulted her very way of life, getting one up against an arrogant celebrity seemed like a good way to blow off some steam. "Just what do you have in mind Harry?"

"Well, a man such as Lockhart will likely do anything to save face; last thing they want is a bit of bad publicity after all. I think a trip to Diagon Alley later this week is just what is needed."

…

Stepping through the fireplace, Susan could smell something delightful coming from the kitchen. "What are you cooking for dinner, Tiddy?" she yelled out before noticing that the family house elf wasn't in the kitchen but rather was sweeping up miniscule pieces of dust.

"Tiddy not be's cooking tonight. Tiddy be asked to not be in kitchen until dinner be served," said Tiddy as she continued on her way, seemingly disgruntled by the fact that she was temporarily banished from the kitchen. Susan meanwhile could only pause in confusion, clearly unsure about just who would be slaving away in the kitchen. Surely it wouldn't be her aunt, vivid memories still recalled the terrible time when Tiddy had been sick and Amelia had taken it upon herself to prepare the meals.

Takeaway food had been the much more viable option.

Gingerly stepping into the kitchen, Susan couldn't help but swallow a lump in her throat as she spotted her aunt cutting away at vegetables with the use of her wand. Her nervousness shattered however into shock as she saw that there was somebody else in the kitchen who seemed to be doing a much more important job than her aunt as flames leapt about the frying pan he was using.

"Harry?" she said in disbelief causing the boy to look over his shoulder at her.

"How's it going?" he asked casually, a flick of the wrist sending a dash of seasoning over the meal he was preparing.

Susan meanwhile just stood there, doing her best imitation of a fish on dry land.

"Dinner will be ready soon if you'd like to go wash up," said Amelia as she passed the sliced vegetables over to Harry. Susan just nodded her head in understanding as she fled to the safety of the bathroom, giving herself time to contemplate the fact that Harry Potter was once again staying with her.

…

Dinner that night had been an interesting affair, Susan unable to believe how well the meal was considering it had been made by human hands. The conversation had mostly surrounded the fact of how Harry had somehow managed to be staying with them and how Amelia would be working on a way to provide more suitable long term arrangements for him. When Susan had tried to pry into why Harry needed new arrangements Amelia had cut the topic right there and then, not wanting to subject her niece to the atrocities that she had witnessed at Harry's 'home.'

After dinner, Amelia had said that she had some work to be done down the office and had asked the two children to behave themselves. Susan took this at face value but couldn't help but wonder why her aunt had taken a spare plate of dinner with her when she had activated a Portkey. Deciding to think nothing about it for the moment, she and Harry had retreated to the lounge room where she was doing her homework. Harry meanwhile…

"I can't believe people actually two knuts for this dribble," scoffed Harry as he read through one of Susan's copies of Teen Witch Weekly.

"Some of us actually like to read about the latest trends and gossip," said Susan, defending her choice of literature.

"And about how fashion never changes in the magical world," mused Harry as he flicked a few pages through.

"Shouldn't you be working on your homework?" asked Susan.

"Already finished," said Harry before coming across a relative article. "Oh isn't this interesting, Hogwarts Students reacting to Potter Club."

"Don't you dare read any further!" warned Susan as she put her quill down.

Harry ignored her as he began to read from the article aloud. " _Dear readers, when we learned of the existence of Potter Club some weeks ago we asked our readers to express their opinion on the matter."_ Harry paused momentarily as he rolled off of the couch and quickly sprung to his feet in order to avoid Susan who was scrambling for the magazine he held. He continued to read as he managed to dance around Susan's attempts to tear the magazine away from him. "' _Our world is full of magic but because of that we have forgotten the true meaning of the word. Potter Club seems like they know what magic really is and are trying to share it with everyone,' writes Susan Bones, a first year Hufflepuff student."_

Lowering the magazine from his eyesight, Harry could see that Susan was no longer chasing him having already blurted out the passage she had sent to the magazine months prior. Instead she was glaring at him, her face red due to a mixture of rage and embarrassment. "For what it's worth, I think you're right," said Harry confusing Susan momentarily and allowing her rage to temporarily drop.

"What?"

"If I had been raised by a wizarding family I would have witnessed magic all day every day until it was commonplace," said Harry. "In Muggle terminology, the word magic can be used to describe any event in where the person watching is unable to understand just how it's happening. For us as witches and wizards, we watch such spectacles and say, 'Oh, in order to do this we just need to do this wand movement and say these words.' Magic, as you wrote, really isn't all that magical. Now from what I understand, Potter Club is doing their best to ensure that whatever it is that they do can't be easily replicated, causing people to wonder just how they did it. As Muggles would describe it, 'it was just like magic.'"

Susan simply stood there for a bit as she tried to come to grasp with what Harry had said and how he had pretty much struck her own beliefs square on the head. She was snapped out of her stupor as Harry lightly bopped her on the head with the Teen Witch Weekly magazine before offering it to her. "Did any of your friends make any comments about what you said?" he asked.

"Nothing to my face," said Susan as she turned her attention towards the ground. "I did hear snickering behind my back though for a while."

"Well then, we best hope that Potter Club does something astounding once more to prove your beliefs right," said Harry. "If you'll excuse me I've had a pretty tiring day and reckon I'm gonna crash early. Have fun with your homework."

Just like that Susan found herself standing in the lounge by herself wondering exactly what had been accomplished by Harry. She had spent enough time with him to know that he didn't simply do stuff for the sake of it so just what had he put into motion.

"Tiddys be thinking young Missus has a crush," said the House Elf as she shambled into the room with a duster in hand.

"Tiddy!"

…

As planned, Amelia, Susan and Harry left several days later to scrounge up their supplies for the coming year at Hogwarts. After having gotten a new set of robes done up to adjust for the increase in height, Amelia directed the two children towards Flourish and Blotts in order to collect the necessary texts for the year ahead. Susan meanwhile had no idea that Harry and Amelia had already ordered the majority of textbooks required and that all that remained were the Defence Against the Dark Arts books of which there were seven.

When Amelia had seen just what was required she had nearly lost her temper before remembering that this was exactly what Harry had predicted. She couldn't understand just how he had foreseen that Gilderoy Lockhart would put his entire collection up as 'necessary texts' to get through the school year when every other professor only asked for a single book, many of which could be used the following year. Harry had quickly stated that it was all to bump up his sales prior to his next release to get everybody back on the bandwagon.

It had taken a lot for Harry to persuade Amelia not to go Lockhart hunting right there and then.

The plan he had instead would make Gilderoy suffer a lot more.

Susan meanwhile just wanted an autograph.

"Harry!" waved Hermione from a few places in front of where he was standing, the brown-haired girl spotting Harry stepping into the store. She wasn't just by herself however as it seemed as if she had convoyed along with Misses Weasley, Ron and Ginny. Unsurprisingly, Ron looked like he wanted to be on another continent while Fred and George were checking out some books that were by no means necessary for Hogwarts students. Extracurricular activities whilst at Hogwarts however was a distinct possibility, he would have to check at a later date. The eldest Weasley still at school was also in attendance but seemed to have no intention of even glancing in Lockhart's direction. Did Percy know something that he wasn't privy to?

"Hey everyone," said Harry as he politely waved back but knew better than to try and cut in line. Gilderoy's fangirls would tear him apart.

"This is so exciting," squealed Susan from next to him. "I can't believe he's going to be teaching us this year."

"Yes…teach," said Harry sarcastically though the wording was lost on Susan as Gilderoy Lockhart stepped into the room through a set of drapes, a picture perfect smile emblazoned on his face. Almost immediately as the man showed himself a photographer stepped into view claiming to be for the Daily Prophet. Harry wasn't so sure about that and figured the man simply worked as a freelance operator and would sell his pictures to the highest bidder but that was beside the point.

He stepped out of line by the barest of margins and ensured that his scar was in plain view.

It only took moments for Gilderoy to latch on.

"It can't be. Harry Potter?" said Gilderoy trying to be as charismatic as possible, as if this were the first time he'd ever met someone who could compete with him in regards to popularity. Harry simply accepted the ragdolling as he was yanked to the front of the store by the photographer only for Gilderoy to latch onto him.

It was then that he struck.

"Take your hands off me," he said quite firmly as he tried to pull away from Lockhart's grip, the fame seeking wizard wondering why anybody would want to get away from him.

"Come now Harry, we'll make the front page," said Lockhart as he tried to pull Harry closer, the young boy deliberately allowing his feet to give way beneath him as he crashed to the ground, his glasses shattering upon impact.

From his position, Harry could already hear the whispers between patrons, many of them unable to believe that their idol had manhandled the child who saved the wizarding world and tossing him to the floor. "Ladies and Gentlemen, I assure you this was just an accident," said Gilderoy as he did his best to reign in the situation.

"Ahhhh!" cried out Harry from beneath the table before he reappeared clutching at his fingers. "You stepped on my hand you prick!"

What were once whispers seemed to escalate in pitch and volume, Lockhart looking about confused about what just was happening. This was supposed to be a simple book signing with a good splash of publicity thrown in. He could already read the crowd and knew that he'd be lucky to even sign a single copy of his text at this rate. Knowing he had to do something impressive, he whipped out his wand. "Come now Harry, let me fix your hand for you."

"Get the hell away from me," said Harry as he scrambled away, partially because of the act and partially because he knew how incompetent Lockhart was with a wand. Storming through the crowd that parted ways for him, Harry sat down on the staircase however he soon found himself surrounded by many of the Weasley brigade along with Susan, Amelia having marched to the front of the rabble to have very serious words with Gilderoy.

"Are you alright Harry?" asked Ginny.

"I'll be fine, it's nothing I can't handle," said Harry mildly wishing he had retrieved his glasses earlier, even if they were broken. Nursing his hand, he could hear the footsteps coming from behind him and knew straight away who it was.

"Well played, Potter," said Malfoy as he strode down past him, not even bothering to look at the rest of the crowd. "Your fans may not have seen it but from up in the gallery I had a picture perfect view of what was going on."

"What's he talking about, Harry?" asked Hermione, wondering just what Draco knew.

"It's nothing," said Harry as he stood up so he could glare Malfoy in what he assumed was his eye. "And if Malfoy wants it to remain as nothing he will be very careful about what he says next."

Draco contemplated his next move wisely, well aware that he was vastly outnumbered even if they were all beneath a pureblood such as himself. It was because of that however he couldn't be too cautious, heavens forbid one of them actually try and strike him like a feral Mudblood. Before he could say anything however a cane was placed on his shoulder, the silver serpent head silencing him before he got a chance to counteract.

"Now, now, Draco, play nice," said Lucius Malfoy as he gently glided his son to the side. "Mister Potter, we meet at last."

Harry absolutely hated this as he allowed the scene to play out identically to the way it had before, or at least how he remembered it. The mere fact that a marked Death Eater could waltz around a bookshop and speak down to his friends in such a vindictive and judgmental manner almost demanded that he pull out his wand and strike him square in the chest.

Thankfully his thoughts were broken by the introduction of Arthur Weasley, allowing Harry to focus more on exactly what was going to happen. Even though he could barely see, he did manage to spot it straight away when the second book was dumped in Ginny's cauldron. A sleight of hand trick and one which basically nobody in the store would even recognize if they weren't looking for it. Harry actually had to admit that the ploy was rather well done and wasn't surprised that he had missed it first time round.

This time though, he was more than prepared.

As soon as both the Malfoy's had left, Harry ushered them all outside where they were all met by Madam Bones. "Well, in compensation for young Mister Potter here, I managed to get Mister Lockhart to gift each and every Hogwarts student his selected texts for the year in exchange for damages caused. I hope that you find this satisfactory," said Amelia with a little twinkle in her eye that went almost completely unseen.

"Well, that sounds quite great, well done," said Harry as he looked at the Weasleys around him before pulling some coins out of his pocket. "In celebration for not having to pay for Lockhart's books, ice creams on me."

Harry was well aware he could have pushed for more but knew that Arthur was too modest of a man to accept anything more than a treat for his children. Giving the money to Ginny, the young girl looked up to him in confusion. "Ginny, you're in charge of making sure everyone gets their fair share okay," said Harry as he took the cauldron from her.

"Okay Harry," she said happily as she ran off down the street, quickly followed by the rest of the Weasley mob, Hermione and Susan tagging on not too far behind.

"I take it there was no problem with Malfoy?" Amelia asked of Arthur.

"Nothing that hasn't been said before," said Arthur. "For once I'd like to see him at the bottom of the ladder and actually have to work his way up as opposed to paying for it."

"One day perhaps," said Amelia. "Now Harry, since your glasses were broken before I feel it only necessary that we go buy you a new pair."

"That'd be excellent," said Harry as he passed Ginny's cauldron to Arthur.

"I trust my niece will be safe in your hands until we return," said Amelia.

"I've looked after this many so far and done a damn fine job of it, what's one more for a few minutes," said Arthur cheekily as he stepped out of the way of women stepping out of Flourish and Blotts. As that as their sign, Amelia and Harry started walking down Diagon Alley with a small spring in their step.

"How's your hand?" asked Amelia.

"Untouched," said Harry, shaking it about for extra emphasis. "Nice work on the shattering charm on my glasses."

"I'd like to think I hadn't lost my touch," said Amelia. "I'm more surprised that everything went to plan."

"Yep," said Harry as he patted the diary that was hidden beneath his clothes. "Everything according to plan."

…

 **Hope you enjoyed.**


	18. Chapter 18

**Disclaimer: I do not own Potter Club**

 **...**

 _Dear Madame Maxine,_

 _For far too long I fear that our magical communities have been spreading further apart than ever and such a gap will only grow with future generations. Hence I propose an exchange program between our two schools, say roughly six children from both Hogwarts and Beauxbatons to spend the time from the start of September to the Christmas break period experiencing both a different culture and a different view on magic itself. If you believe that this may be a worthwhile experience for some of your students, please send me a reply and perhaps I might even be able to come over and we can discuss this face to face, provided both of us have the time of course._

 _In days however where few secrets can be kept through mere Owl Post, I humbly request that if you do proceed to agree with meeting me upon such a time you alert me without informing me of what it is you plan to do. While I'd like to think that my government can be trusted you never know who is reading our letters and as such, simply reply with a date, location and time of your arrival._

 _Thank you for your time._

 _Sincerely,_

 _Albus..._

"Hey Susan?"

"Yes Harry?"

"What order does Dumbledore's middle names go in?"

"It's Albus Wulfric Percival Brian Dumbledore."

"Are you sure?"

"Of course."

"Thank you."

 _Sincerely,_

 _Albus Wulfric Percival Brian Dumbledore._

…

Harry sat aboard the Hogwarts Express having forgone the more boisterous compartment of the train, the one that contained the biggest gossip mongers amongst his peers, to track down a compartment of his own. It had slightly miffed many of his fellow train riders but he had simply insisted that he had some personal manners that he needed to think over. It wasn't an outright lie by any means, for the last few weeks of the holidays he had felt compelled by the Horcrux residing in the diary to write inside and slowly spill his soul towards the pages within.

He had managed to prevent himself from doing anything reckless, part of him was desperate to mock away at the younger Tom and tell him how much of an arse he was. He felt however that such a tactic would backfire terribly and as such refrained from doing so.

Despite the fact he wanted to so bad.

Shaking his head, Harry fought away the Compulsion Charm that the diary was trying to leech toward him. Taking in a deep breath, Harry rubbed at his eyes as he considered just what needed to be done. He didn't have the Sword of Gryffindor on hand in order to destroy the infernal creation nor did he believe himself proficient in the casting of Fiendfyre. Unfortunately, that left him with only one real option other than taking the Horcrux straight to Dumbledore.

Wouldn't that be a delightful conversation.

" _Professor Dumbledore sir, I discovered that a part of Voldemort was trapped in this diary. How do I know this you ask? Well you see my scar was once also a Horcrux and as such I am connected to Voldemort's bullshit as much as I hate to admit it. How did I get rid of the one in my skull? One too many ice creams froze the darkness over, worst brain freeze ever!"_

Yeah, he had no way to tackle the situation if Dumbledore discovered what he was up to. That didn't mean however that destroying both the book and the diadem (he had been planning on destroying the relic as soon as he returned but had no real way to go about it without threatening others) was going to be easy. He was going to need Basilisk venom.

Boy was that going to be fun.

"Excuse me, might you be Harry Potter?" asked a voice from the doorway, snapping Harry out of his self-inflicted trance.

"I guess, but anybody could be Harry Potter were they to say they were," said Harry as he realized just what kind of conversation this would likely be now that he knew who he was talking to.

"That would depend, would the real Harry Potter be plagued by as many Wrackspurts as yourself?" she asked with a smile on her face.

"Could I not be keeping the Wrackspurts around for pleasant company?"

"And just like that, more than half of them have vanished in an instance," she said dreamily.

"Come, make yourself comfortable, Luna," said Harry as he gestured to the seat opposite him.

"You know who I am?" asked Luna as she placed a hand on the door railing, tilting her head to the side momentarily in confusion.

"The Wrackspurts told me," answered Harry with a cheeky smile spread across his face. He prevented himself from laughing as Luna struggled to comprehend his answer. "Come, sit and join me."

"I'm afraid I can't, I must continue the journey of making new friends," said Luna.

"In which case, I can safely tell you that you have made a friend of Harry Potter," said Harry with a cheeky wink.

"In which case, Harry Potter, thank you for helping save my mother's life. If that will be all, fare thee well."

Harry couldn't respond as the blonde enigma closed the door to his compartment, likely skipping her way down the corridor on her quest for friendship. Luna's mother was still alive when last time she would have passed away by now. While that was confusing as to how in its own right, deep down Harry was still happy that Luna was still Luna. How Luna still having a mother figure in her life would affect her down the track was difficult to tell at this point and he simply shrugged his shoulders and figured that he would deal with that as it came.

Still wouldn't stop him from recruiting Luna to Potter Club. He could only imagine the creative ideas that she would bring to the table.

Before that however there was one teensy job he had to deal with, one which unfortunately didn't involve shattering Colin's camera.

Speaking of which…

*Flash*

"I will break that over your head!"

…

"…"

"…"

"Are you sure it's this classroom?"

"Of course I'm sure Tracey. The note said the room adjacent to the Charms Classroom at six."

"Well it didn't mention what day!"

"That's because if you had any memory storage not reserved for whatever wizard you deemed attractive you would recall that the head of Potter Club said they would give us our second task three days after the start of term."

"That I did."

"HOLY SHIT!"

"Wow you scare easy."

"How did you get there?"

"Magic?"

"I find it really disconcerting how that one word basically answers every question we could ask."

"Point to you Miss Greengrass."

"Thanks."

"Alright, so what do you want us to do then?"

"You two are aware that this is your last and only chance to get into Potter Club right?"

"Yes."

"Of course."

"Now, might I assure that both of you know how to dance?"

"Depends, what kind of dance?"

"Tango."

"I know the tango."

"I think I know it."

"Miss Greengrass, you have two days to instruct Miss Davies on how to perform the Tango perfectly."

"And what would you have us do with this knowledge?"

"…"

"Oh no."

"What Daphne?"

"You've got to be kidding me."

"Afraid not, and if anybody is to ask why you have done what you have simply say that you felt as if you were compelled to do so. Be specific in using the word 'compelled.' It's amazing how much persuasion a single word can have."

"This is going to be so embarrassing."

"Saturday morning the pair of you will come to this classroom to collect the clothes you will wear for your prank. I expect the prank to be performed that evening, a letter will be here with clear instructions on what to do when you collect your clothes for the festivities. Failure to do so…well I'll let you imagine the consequences."

"This had better be worth it."

"We'll get into Potter Club Daph, of course it'll be worth it!"

"You don't even know what we're doing yet."

"…"

"Ladies, I bid you adieu and look forward to your performance. Don't let me down."

…

It was amazing how quickly forty eight hours could pass when trying to learn how to Tango. Thankfully both she and Daphne had been aware that they would be approached during the opening week of term and as such had studied intensely over the school break in order to ensure their studies wouldn't be so quickly effected. Considering the amount of time and effort that likely went into every prank that Potter Club pulled they had to either be the greatest of students who were able to complete their extracurricular activities without affecting their grade or complete slackers.

"Are we really expected to wear this?" asked Tracey as she held up her attire for the evening, silently thankful that she would not be leading the event. "It's actually really nice."

"For you maybe," said Daphne as she held up her attire for the evening, highly disliking the part in which she would have to be playing the male role in what was typically a very romantic dance. To be doing this with her best friend was mortifying to a degree but if she was going to humiliate herself alongside someone she was somewhat glad she got to drag Tracey down with her.

"C'mon Daph, surely it won't be that bad, all we're doing is dancing after all," said Tracey reassuringly.

"You know what, there's the letter with our instructions, why don't you read it," suggested Daphne as she spotted the note that had been hiding underneath Tracey's dress. Without a word, surprising Daphne slightly, Tracey picked up the folded up piece of parchment and began to read from it. While not having seen the contents herself, Daphne could take an estimated guess as to what was going through her friend's mind as her eyes slowly grew wider and wider.

"No…" she said slowly as she finished reading. "He can't….I mean…"

"That's the price of entry," said Daphne with a shrug of her shoulders as she locked the door they had previously entered, figuring that they would be required to change here and she for one didn't want to be caught wearing these clothes longer than necessary.

"But it's going to be in front of everyone!" Tracey practically screamed.

"And it's quite simple to understand that we're going to get caught, and hopefully someone will stop us sooner rather than later."

Tracey was able to tell by Daphne's tone of voice that her friend already knew that it would take some time before they would stop their routine. Just how in the hell was she meant to do this all without blowing up their cover that they weren't trapped in a spell?

"Do you think he'll be watching?" she asked.

"Of course he will be, if we don't go through with this he will know, and if this is just the test imagine what the punishment for failure will be," said Daphne, her voice cold with the knowledge that they were trapped.

She merely hoped that it was all worth it.

…

Hermione sat at the dining room of the Great Hall, slowly picking away at the dinner before her. She had been trying her best to spend time chatting with Harry in regards to his plans for Potter Club but for the moment he had been rather silent. Even on the train she had encountered Susan who had stated that while Harry had been staying the last couple weeks of the holidays with her he hadn't wished to spend the ride with anyone.

Having known the disease of loneliness, she had sought him out and it wasn't all that difficult to find him. There had been a gaggle of girls standing outside of a door all with dreamy looks in their eyes after all. As she had barged her way through past the open doorway, of which none of the other females had dared step foot past, she found herself getting several disdainful looks for daring to be in the presence of the magnificent Harry Potter.

Sensing the sudden hostility in the air, Harry pulled out his wand and with a gentle flick closed the door to the compartment and drew down the blinds, a muffle of annoyed groans escaping the crowd outside. She had asked why Harry had allowed such a crowd to build in the first place only to be told that he hadn't noticed them, simply working on something that his Godfather had taught him.

She had chewed at her lip for several minutes as she tried to pry anymore information only to fail before being dismissed with him saying that he wasn't feeling well. Unfortunately she couldn't tell whether that was the truth or if he had just been saying to get her to go away. His skin seemed a tone paler and there were bags under his eyes indicating that he hadn't been sleeping well.

Perhaps he had been suffering nightmares as of late?

Even in class she hadn't been able to get much of a response out of him and he was always somewhat aloof. Like his mind simply wasn't active for parts of the day at a time. She had decided to confront him that evening directly after Charms class but he hadn't showed for the lesson, something which had deeply shocked her. It was late into the lesson when Professor Flitwick had noticed her distress and had informed her that Mister Potter had been given leave from his class for the school year to work on matters of much greater importance.

The wording had immediately made her believe that the professor knew of Harry's involvement and leadership in Potter Club but immediately dismissed it. There was no way Harry would confide in a teacher which was easily punishable, despite how humorous it may have been. However that just begged the question as to why Harry was permitted to simply skip a class and

from the sound of it, every Charms class for at least the rest of the term.

Just why was Harry getting special permission to do as he wished from Professor Flitwick?

Hermione's musings were shattered as the doors to the Great Hall slammed open, all eyes in the hall directing to the entrance in curiosity as to what had destroyed their conversations. She was more than surprised to see two of her peers, dressed in highly formal attire grasping one another intently before music started to play. Where the music was playing from was a question she feared she would never get the answer to.

Daphne Greengrass and Tracey Davies were both dressed in some of the most extravagant clothes that some of the students had ever seen. The one main difference however was that while Tracey was wearing what appeared to be a sapphire blue ball gown, Daphne was dressed in a formal black and white tuxedo with a dark red bow tie to top off the attire.

Before anybody could ask when the music hit it's first synonymous beat, both Daphne and Tracey moved as one, directly down the middle of the Great Hall as a single equity, each and every move they made being both one and the same. Such flourish and drive left many of the students with their mouths agape. Up upon the Professor's table, Snape looked as if he was trying to discover a new shade of crimson while Professor Lockhart merely clapped away with the music.

Nobody really paid the aloof professor much mind however, other than the fact that every student owned a copy of his books by his hand through a desperate attempt at saving his honour had backfired. Despite him reassuring everyone that everything was and would always be alright with him in the world, people were already starting to question his attitude and methods in an educational department.

Returning to the present, she watched in mild horror as Tracey was dipped by Daphne, their noses almost touching as they grew ever closer to the end of their routine. Whatever conclusion was meant to follow however was shut down as both Professor's Snape and McGonagall marched down the aisle with a purpose, neither determined to leave until they had all the answers.

Hermione meanwhile could only believe that this had been Harry's doing, having cast a spell on both Tracey and Daphne and forcing them to do the tango in the middle of dinner service. Even those of whom weren't there at the time would know of what Tracey and Daphne had done and tease them mercilessly for at least a while.

Was that enough reason to warrant having Harry skip a fundamental part of his education? Of course not. Something else was going on and she would be damned if she didn't figure out what it was.

She was Hermione Granger after all, Queen of Potter Club. As such she had a role to uphold, even when the king was away. Which also raised the question of as to why he wasn't here, watching what was clearly his handiwork in motion? Just what was Harry Potter doing?

…

"Thank you all for coming, you have no idea what this means to me."

"Of course we were going to come."

"You have no idea how excited we were when we heard of this."

"It seems like word of mouth spreads like wildfire."

"There's what, two dozen people here?"

"In which case you really need to think of finding a bigger classroom."

"She's right, you're only going to get more people interested about this."

"You really don't know how nervous I was about this from the beginning!"

"We're all nervous at times, don't be too hard on yourself."

"Self confidence Ginny!"

"Okay, then I declare that the first official meeting of the Potter Fan Club to now be open."


	19. Chapter 19

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

…

"Nobody ever comes in here, let alone a boy," said Moaning Myrtle,not unsatisfied to have something to gawk over.. For years now students had avoided her domain like the plague and she understood why. She had been grouchy and highly upset when she had been killed and those emotions had carried over to the afterlife. If this boy so much as said a word out of line then she would give him an earful like no other, despite the fact she would ravish him if she only knew a way how. "Why are you here?"

"To slay a monster that resides in these halls, a monster whose great yellow eyes took away the life of an innocent student fifty years ago," said Harry, his eyes sharpening as he spoke to Myrtle. His words had caused the ghost to go a shade paler, the undead student having no words to speak at this moment. "Know this, I do this not to avenge you, but to ensure that no other student suffers the same fate. A creature of great power rests asleep at this moment and I will make sure it never wakes."

"But you're just a boy, how can you possibly kill such a monster!" spat Myrtle venomously, wholeheartedly believing that this child was foolish in his endeavours.

"Let's put it this way, if I fail we can go out for moonlight strolls over the lake as undead equals, both slain by something we were ill equipped for," said Harry. "Perhaps then may we find some happiness in the afterlife?"

Myrtle's expression did a complete one eighty, much as Harry had predicted. She giggled at the flirtation headed her way before she drifted backwards into one of the stalls. "I'll be waiting," she whispered as she passed through the wooden barrier.

Harry knew however that he wouldn't fail, he couldn't fail. There would be no heroic battle going on, no risking of life and limb. The rucksack he held by his side contained Horcruxes; both the diary and in Rowena Ravenclaw's tiara. He had gotten hold of the second the day before.

He had felt the immense pressure from both pieces of Tom's soul so close together, both of their compulsions slowly eating away at him. There had been no way for him to simply stash them away somewhere, he had his own magic so focused on ensuring that the compulsion didn't spread to his peers.

Perhaps this had been the reason as to why the task he had given both Daphne and Tracy had been quite mild in regards to joining Potter Club. His mind had not properly been on the task at hand, having had enough trouble with keeping Voldemort's Horcruxes in check. He had wanted to put enchantments on the clothes that both Daphne and Tracy had been wearing so that anybody that had been wishing to prevent them from continuing with their routine was forced to repeat what they were doing. With his mind in such shambles he hadn't dared putting such runes into play, heavens knew what would happen if he had done a single stroke incorrectly.

He felt kind of bad in that regard towards both Tracy and Daphne but he still had no intention of fully welcoming them into Potter Club. They had no idea how Potter Club actually operated and the rest of Potter Club had no idea that they were already up two members. For now he would have them work as separate entities, with their own set tasks and duties to uphold. The main thing would be abusing the power of his Invisibility Cloak in order to get them up to speed. If they were members of the house of the snake then he would have them act as such.

Shaking his head of such thoughts, he stepped up to the tap that had the serpent engraved into the side. Speaking in hisses, the basin began to shudder before sinking into the floor. A low crow rang out from the blindfolded rooster that was the sole living being within his satchel. He knew what he was facing, he knew its weakness and he knew that the venom it possessed was capable of destroying the abominations he currently held.

Sure it was cheap.

He didn't give a shit.

…

Harry went down to breakfast the next morning feeling like a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders. The Horcruxes were destroyed, each with a horrendous piercing scream that had sent shivers down his spine. A thousand year old basilisk had been slain without even having left its hibernation. He had contemplated talking with the millennium year old serpent but chose against it. Last thing he wanted was for it to talk its way out of the situation and either kill him or wait idly by for another century or so before waking up hungry and having to pick on innocent children for dinner.

It was just something he couldn't risk.

Straight in, straight out, disappoint Myrtle by still being alive, leave.

Nothing more, nothing less.

Rubbing at his eyes, he looked down the hall to how desolate it was this morning, barely seven in the morning and nearly nobody was in the hall. Arguably the only reason he was up at this time was because he had to slay a thousand year old snake without being detected, perhaps just a touch different from doing some research towards a Potions Assignment.

Smacking his cheeks, Harry tried to snap himself out of this self-inflicted funk. Thankfully, someone else was there to help him get out of it. "Excuse me," she said from directly in front of Harry, the twelve year old boy not even having realized that somebody was in front of him. The crest on her robe indicated Ravenclaw but she was not from his year, perhaps a grade or two higher.

"Hello there," he said trying to be somewhat polite. "What can I do for you Miss…"

"Oh sorry, my name is Isabelle Lionheat," she said in a flustered voice, clearly taken aback by the fact she had not displayed any of the manners she had been taught as a child.

"Lionheat?" repeated Harry, for certain that he had heard incorrectly.

"I know what you're thinking, I bet you thought as soon as I started with Lion I was going to make it Lionheart but that's not the case," she said in a rapid fire pace, clearly having had to answer that question multiple times.

"My apologies than Miss Lionheat for doubting your word," said Harry with a light bow of the head. "Might I now inquire why you have graced me with your presence?"

"Oh, of course, you see, the reason is that, I umm…I wanted to ask you see, if umm…you would like to go to Hogsmeade with me for the first trip of the year, only if you want to of course, I won't force you or anything," she said, stumbling over her words all the while.

Harry couldn't help but smile a touch at how nervous the girl was being in regards to the situation. "As much as I appreciate the offer Miss Lionheat, I think you may have forgotten just what grade I'm in," said Harry stating the obvious fact that he wasn't old enough to be permitted to go to the nearby village.

"But you're Harry Potter, they'll let you go," declared Isabelle in a matter of fact tone.

"Despite who I am, they won't bend the rules for me," he said. "Thank you again for the offer, perhaps next year if I'm unaccounted for we can look at doing it then. Until then you're going to have to come up with another idea for a date."

At the word date, Isabelle cheeks seemed to burn three shades brighter, incoherent babbling escaping her lips before she strode away, heavy footsteps almost echoing throughout the great hall. Harry meanwhile was sitting there contemplating why a girl two years his senior had decided to ask him out on a date cause he was about ninety percent sure that that hadn't happened first time round. With Lockhart basically running around with his Memory Charms however he couldn't be completely sure.

His distractions from playing with his food continued as he watched as Professor McGonagall marched down the middle of the hallway, her eyes focused as she clutched a scroll tightly within her hands. Through her mumbling he could pick out a few words, some of which were quite colourful. Something had clearly gotten on her nerves and he couldn't help but wonder if it had something to do with the parchment she was holding.

…

"What's all the commotion?" asked Hermione as she saw the group of students gathered about the front of the dining hall. A few of those who had early morning lessons were trying to barge their way through so that they could have some breakfast but the rest seemed to be scrambling to write their name down on a piece of parchment.

"Hermione," said Lavender as she spotted her roommate.

"What's going on?" asked Hermione.

"Apparently their doing a magical school exchange for two months starting from August," explained Lavender, having already heard the news from Padma who had heard it from a third year student who had heard it from a Prefect whose boyfriend had heard Professor Sprout talking about it.

Lavender's social network was scary.

"Magical school exchange?" repeated Hermione.

"Yea, those interested have to put their name down on the parchment and then six names will be chosen at random to spend October and November in France attending Beauxbatons!"

Hermione blinked a couple of ideas at the thought of spending some time learning in a different school, with a different way of learning and a different library. Rummaging through her bag she found her quill and a bottle of ink. For now though she would simply go and have breakfast and wait for the ruckus to die down somewhat before putting her name down along with one other if he hadn't already submitted himself.

…

"Hello Luna," said Harry as he spotted the blonde haired girl, sitting where he had once upon a time been petrified and subsequently painted. Hopefully this time would have him not an unwilling turned willing model.

"Hello Harry," said Luna as she gazed at the cloud riddled sky. "Has your club ambushed you yet?"

"My club? Repeated Harry wondering how in the hell Luna already knew of his participation in Potter Club.

"Well it's not your club, but the club named in your honour?" Harry made several attempts at forming some manner of retort but came up dry. Since he currently seemed unable to form any words at the moment, Luna felt it necessary to provide the next comment so that he may rid himself of some of the magical creatures trying to nest between the gaps in his teeth. Having your mouth open for so long was always a way to attract unwanted nasties. "Were you unaware of your fan club?"

Harry blinked twice as he repeated Luna's question in his mind. "My…fan club?" he said finally.

"Of course," said Luna as she looked at him with her bright eyes. "I went to the first meeting out of curiosity but felt it rather boring; it was just a bunch of hormone riddled students discussing between one another about how great you were as both a person and a hero. They also seemed to have a betting pool going on who would get into your pants first."

"What!" exclaimed Harry in shock before Luna started to giggle, slowly coming to the realization that she had pranked him, thankfully so. Despite having an adult mind the mere idea that someone would want to have sex with him at such a young age was terrifying. It did however explain why Isabelle had approached him earlier, she must have been encouraged by those around him to ask him out.

"Of course I'm joking, the betting pool is in regards to who you start dating," clarified Luna, Harry somewhat praying that she was trying to joke with him once more. Sadly the thought that girls were gambling on who he would start dating was more troublesome than the last option.

"Allow me to get this straight," said Harry as he tried to get a grip on the situation. "A group of girls all gathered together, I'm hazarding a guess that they were from all different houses, and decided to spend some time gossiping with me as the main topic of conversation. Then for some reason, of which I can only imagine is due to some manner of ridiculously bad luck on my part, they start scheming with one another on who is going to end up being my girlfriend?"

"Yes."

Harry smacked his forehead, careful not to break his glasses in the process. "And for some reason they're alright with competing against one another?" he asked. "No sabotaging, no backstabbing?"

"I believe they're all in the belief that you are better than all of them, that they should just be worthy enough to be the girl on your arm," said Luna as she returned to looking at the sky. "I was the one who voiced out that there was no need to sabotage themselves and that they would do the work on their own."

Harry didn't know whether to thank the girl by his side or smack her over the head for so blatantly putting a target on her back. He wondered if he could somehow get Hermione to infiltrate the club for him and find out just what all the fuss was about. He also needed someone in there to protect Luna and prevent her from any potential bullying problems that could come out of her speaking out in such a big environment. She didn't really go about mincing her words, especially with her freakishly large vocabulary.

"Just so you know, if you were to allow me to kiss you right now I'd be forty galleons richer."

"I'll see you later Luna," said Harry as he quickly got up from his seat next to the younger girl and made a hasty retreat.

"Silly Harry," said Luna to herself as she kicked her legs back and forth as a peaceful breeze allowed her hair to flutter in the wind. He didn't know that he had to be the one to initiate the kiss, any floozy leaping at the opportunity would be disqualified. That was one piece of information however that she would keep to herself.

For now.

…

"Thank you for joining with me this afternoon."

"You don't know how much I hate you right now."

"I can take a guess."

"I thought it was fun, plus that dress actually fits me really well."

"I'm glad you like it."

"I hope that the two of you weren't too badly harassed as a result?"

"We're fine."

"It was bad for a couple of days but the whole thing with kinda vanished after the idea that

students will be able to spend a couple months in France."

"Will the two of you be participating?"

"I am!"

"Not me."

"Any reason why not?"

"I believe that's none of your business now is it."

"Okay then."

"So we're actually part of Potter Club now aren't we!"

"In a way."

"In a way? What do you mean? We did what you wanted us to do, so why aren't we in?"

"Were you just messing with us about being the leader of Potter Club? Choose your next words carefully or I will hex you from here to next week."

"I am Potter Club, do not doubt me on this!"

"…Holy shit."

"What, how did you do that?"

"It does not matter. What matters is the two of you now work for me as a sub branch of Potter Club."

"Sub branch?"

"The rest of Potter Club works as a group to work out and create elaborate feats of magic that will continue to cause laughter and joy as a whole. What they need to know though is that they are not immune to pranks just because they are a part of Potter Club."

"You're telling us that we need to prank members of Potter Club?"

"Just how are we going to do that?"

"And isn't this counterproductive? I mean, shouldn't we all be working together."

"Perhaps, but allow me to put it in this regard. In a medieval society so to speak, I would be the King of Potter Club. By my right hand side I have my Queen and I have two faithful Knights, again, only so to speak. There are more but they matter not in comparison to what you two are."

"Then what are we?"

"You're my assassins, and as my assassins I have your first target right here and waiting. There is no time limit, there is no requirements and under no circumstance is he permitted to be injured. There will be no harm caused through the use of these pranks, understood?"

"Yea."

"Of course."

"Good. Humiliate within boundaries, as entertaining as it would be I'd rather not have students running around the hallways starkers."

"Okay then."

"Now, your first target is Fred Weasley."

"Fred Weasley? He's a part of Potter Club?"

"I trust that you'll keep such information confidential, because I can assure you that the consequences for leaking this information would be…unpleasant."

"Question?"

"Yes Tracy?"

"How will we know which of the Weasley Twins is Fred?"

"Well then, that's something you're going to have to figure out on your own now won't you. Have fun."

"…"

"…"

"Well this sucks."

"Any ideas?"

"Well…"

…

Harry sat in Defence Against the Dark Arts, idly doodling away on his parchment as opposed to actually paying attention to whatever dribble Lockhart was saying in order to keep his class entertained. After the disaster that had started in their first class with the Cornish Pixies, their 'teacher' had decided to leave the creature aspect of class for a while to focus on theory work.

Theory work which basically meant, if you've read my book and therefore know that I am the greatest wizard on the planet you will pass my course.

Harry felt it was time to see if he could find out something of use from this class. "Professor," said Harry, breaking Lockhart's monologue and somewhat providing some manner of attention to the class. "I was looking up dangerous creatures earlier and wondered what you would do if you encountered a Boggart?"

"A Boggart," repeated Gilderoy as he stretched his memory banks, the parts that weren't all about himself being quite limited, before answering. "Well, I don't know how other people would handle such a fearsome creature but I would cast "Begonus Bubbly Bobbly Boggartus," it's the most effective way of ridding oneself of a Boggart."

Harry blinked several times at the ridiculousness of the 'spell' that Lockhart had stated and wasn't surprised to see that nobody was copying down such a 'useful piece of information'. Seeing that there was no reaction to what he had said, he simply stumbled his way back into his previous speech as if the answer he had given had never occurred at all.

Harry meanwhile was wondering how much it would cost to have a live Boggart bought and shipped into the school.

…

 **Hope you enjoyed.**


End file.
